The Strongest Shield
by oblivon2991
Summary: The legend! A walking disaster! The "Strongest" Man on Earth! Many titles he gained. Many times he "saved" Earth. His heroics, all a lie? Or all true? Not as it matters. Thrown into an entirely different environment, a new world, he will prove his worth. Hilarity and misunderstanding ensue when he appears! The King engine starts: 'Dub! Dub' "Man, I quit being a hero..."
1. King of the New World

**Yeah... another story... What do you expect? You face an addict XD**

**The popularity of the story will decide whether I will continue or not! :)**

**(so, if you want me to continue this little "one-shot" please review/favourite/follow)**

**I already announced this story under the voting section of my profile, hopefully, it will be bearable.**

**Now then... the usual prattle!**

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**Written by Oblivon2991**

**Proofread: The usual drunken gang of misfits and Transcended Potato**

**Thank you for reading my fanfiction and for giving me a chance.**

**My mother language is not English, so please be patient about the grammatical issues.**

**I don't own One Punch Man anime/manga/web-comic One.**

**I don't own The Rising of the Shield Hero (Japanese: ****盾の勇者の成り上がり****, Hepburn: Tate no Yūusha no Nariagari) written by Aneko Yusagi.**

**If you have anything to add or have questions, or remark, please review, or send a PM.**

**Thank you!**

**Now let's start the story!**

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**Chapter 1: "King" of the New World**

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"Myne, you poor damsel. Please, could you recount the case?" the old and wise looking king turned to the burgundy haired girl, watching her with a gentle expression. "Of course, if it's not too hard to recount. It must be traumatic."

"Ye-Yes…" the beautiful girl gulped hard, fighting with her tears.

"H-he raped me!" the beautiful lady pointed at the lean and tall guy, standing in the middle of the court. Her tone already quivered, in the middle of breaking down.

"H-He just came into my room that night! He then tried to force himself on me! Saying, 'The night is still young! How about a little fun?' He reeked from alcohol the whole time!" her tears poured onto her cheeks; she was very convincing indeed. So much so, everyone started to glare at the blond adult in the middle of the court.

"I never thought you would go that far!" the one with bow said, sadness filling his heart.

"You monster!" the blonde college student with long hair tightened his grip on his spear, grinding his teeth in rage. He was ready to strike down the man! "But what did I expect? Looks like a brute and acts like a brute!"

"How disappointing…" the third one with sword shook his head, all around, the people had already decided on the man's guilt.

_"Man, I want to quit being a hero… I want to go home!"_

And when he thought about it, how eventless that day started.

Who would've thought he'd end up in a different world? Who'd expect a shield would get stuck on his forearm? Thinking about it, that day started all too well. He should have expected something will happen. Something always happened to him.

It was the prerequisite of his existence.

_"Why me…?"_

**(A few days earlier...)**

"Aw man, I hope I can find some new manga..." a man groaned up, walking on the street.

Among the crowd of people which made up City M, this individual looked quite ordinary. Every-day clothes. Every-day posture, a hood pulled over his head, underneath a baseball hat to hide the three vertical scars running through his left eye.

What made him special was his particular face structure, and his scars, scars that everyone around the world recognized. His characteristic face, the one he wanted to hide at all costs!

"Let's hope it'll work better than last time…"

Though hiding his identity was not always a successful endeavor, he was confident in his skill to bluff his way out from every — and any situation. Yet, despite this confidence, he rather avoided meeting with anyone. He only wanted peace and quiet.

_"I want to go home, play games… watch some new anime and read my manga!"_

The man mentally complained, continuing his way.

Albeit, his general dislike of crowded places was evident. He couldn't just sit around, stuck at home all the time, just playing games.

Even people like him needed to go out, exercise a little bit, or simply walk around. Unfortunately, not everything could be delivered to his home in this age. All thanks to the ever-present monster threat that this world faced.

In that case, his only choice was to go out and buy the things he wanted by himself.

"I hope that no one recognizes me this time." One can say, he was quite the celebrity. A lucky individual many would consider him. Though from his perspective, it was quite the opposite.

_"I don't feel lucky at all…"_ Yes, his thinking was such. Negative and depressed, mostly.

Every time he'd go out incognito, someone would recognize him. Every time he goes out for a walk, a monster pops up — trying to challenge him. And always, _always, _whenever his identity was revealed, people rush at him, celebrating his person, asking for an autograph.

_"I just want to live a quiet life to play my games! I just want to be left alone! Why can't people ever leave me alone!?"_

Though the man complained, since he woke up, he had encountered neither monsters nor fans that recognized him. One can say, his day started suspiciously well.

"I will activate the King Engine! Beware monster!"

"No! Mr King! Please don't! Spare the miserable life of this monster! Aghhhhh…!"

Two children played on the street, one depicting the 'Strongest Man on Earth', King. The other was playing the monster that the hero had just exterminated. Many would find it flattering, but for the man, it just made his life harder and more miserable.

_"Why did it ever happen!?"_

Ever since that event, his life had changed — for the worse. Ever since that time, people exaggerated everything he did! Ever since that time, he was always in the worst possible place, at the worst possible time!

"_Sigh_…" sighing deep, the man hissed away his thoughts, entering the store.

It was a busy place, filled with people that were known to the majority as 'otakus.' People who like games, manga, and other "esoteric" items. All browsing relentlessly, trying to find something to their liking before it was snatched away by another otaku.

As the saying goes: "An otaku's worst enemy was another otaku that wanted the same thing." At least, the same thing he as well carved for.

Today was a big-sale day after all. Even with plenty of money in his pocket — the man received for his 'heroic' work — he didn't want to be left out. Today was when you could buy great works for a great price, after all!

_"Good… no one has recognized me just yet..."_

Pulling his baseball hat deeper, he tried to avoid any suspicion, browsing the line, searching for anime, manga, and games — anything that his sizable collection had missed.

"Eh… Mr…" Yet, he was not a lucky man, for even despite his best attempt yet, someone seemed to recognize his tall form.

"Hmm?"

Looking to his side, a small child stood, watching him with adoration.

"Co-could you...?" he stood straight, hands extending a magazine that bore King's solid form on the front page. It was a manga, about the legendary 'King' and his adventures. Filled with nonsensical stories, further exaggerating his 'accomplishments.'

He should be feeling glad people think so highly about him. Yet, the only thing he felt when he looked at the heroic figure fighting with a dreadful monster on the front page was the same dread when he encountered a real monster. But above all, he felt shame, lying all the time.

"If you keep quiet about me, I'll give you an autograph…" True, he hated when random strangers walked up to him and bothered him during his free time. Still, he was not heartless; for kids, he usually made an exception.

"Su-sure! Thank you, Mr. King! You're the best!"

"Shh…" motioning to be silent, the child nodded, King signing his magazine.

"Be good…" he waved him away just like that.

"Ye-Yes! Right!" With that, the brat disappeared. Be it fear or adoration that made him keep quiet about this meeting, King cared not; he only cared about his own free time and being left alone.

It was bad enough that random strangers would walk up to him and bother him all the time. The last thing he needed was a whole bunch come asking questions, or even challenge him. He was already strained to his limits; he had no idea how much more he can take.

"Hmm…" some time had passed, but King managed to browse the store from top to bottom, collecting everything his expansive collection did not have.

"Yo-you are-!?"

"Is something wrong?" he asked the cashier. Once more, he was recognized.

"Mr. Ki-King! You're shopping here!?"

"Can you keep quiet? I am here only to buy these things…" He placed his filled basket on the counter, earning a nod and a gulp. His tone was calm, his words slow. Yet, all of this, combined with his sunken face, made him even more terrifying and menacing.

"Ye-yes…"

"Is he really King?"

"I didn't even recognize him…"

He wasn't the most perceptive of people, yet already he heard those accursed whispers. Oh! How he wished people would just leave him alone.

"Tha-thank you for choosing us, Mr. King. May I ask for a photograph? Just so people know you chose our store."

"I am running rather late now. Maybe next time…"

"O-Of course… please forgive me!" the cashier dared not to defy the man, he could only simply oblige, and bow deeply. Fearing that 'The Strongest Man On Earth' would destroy their store with but a brush of his hand.

***Bang***

He had really, really hoped, today would be the day that it would be eventless. He was never a lucky man. In fact, Lady Luck seemed to like tormenting him. Just like it was expected, in the next moment, a shockwave shook the entire store. The rumbling was coming from outside.

"Wha-!?"

"Mo-Monster!"

"I am the Librarian Owl! My love of books and the library was so profound; I turned into a Librarian Owl! Feel the weight of knowledge! Deny the stench of video games, TV, and Manga!"

Great… another random monster appears, just when he is nearby. King really considered that he was cursed. Every time he goes out, this happened.

_"Why me…?!"_

He asked himself again and again, never finding the answer. No one was willing to answer. No one _could _answer. The only thing he could do was cry on the inside every time it happens.

"M-Mr. King! Please save us!"

"Better get out there…" sweating profoundly, he put away his collected "loot" as fast as he can, heading out.

"He-Hey! Mr. King! Will you fight with the monster?"

All the people in the store watched him with hope-filled eyes. This strain was too much! He wanted to get out there!

"I will see what I can do…"

Slowly, but steadily, he left the shop. Maybe if he moved slowly enough, that monster will not recognize him. Perhaps, he can get away without anyone-

"You there! Stop!"

_"Nooo…"_ all hope was lost, for he was noticed by the monster.

It was happening again! Even amidst this chaos, the monster that looked like an owl mixed with a human — wearing an academic dress pointed its wing towards him.

"What are you thinking!? Where are you going!?" throwing a book, it actually crashed into the truck just before him, thrown with such force that it destroyed it completely.

_"It almost hit me...!"_ King was now trembling. He almost died. He felt the wind of the book, thrown with such power it brushed off his hood and hat.

"I am the protector of knowledge! Anyone who reads this trash must be eradicated! You there! Do you love books? Or you carry the stench with you the people call games and manga!"

_"Sigh…"_

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

"This sound…" the people suddenly stopped in their tracks, turning to King's stalwart form. The man just stood, slowly turning towards the monster.

"Me?" he pointed at himself, trying to play the clueless man. Deep inside, he was trembling harder than a storm-tossed puppy on a whaling ship.

"The King Engine!?"

"It is him!"

"The Strongest Man On Earth!"

"Mr. King! Save us!"

_"Not again… I was too slow! I should have run!"_

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

"Wa-Wait!? You are "that" King!?" the owl man backed away, now looking terrified.

"Yes…" The King Engine intensified, the rumbling of 'battle intent' could be heard all around him as he faced the creature. Like an Adonis, he moved not an inch.

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

"I want to go home. Can you just stop this? Please, just leave." that disinterested, scornful face that looked down anyone who was weaker — keeping one exact expression.

Those blue eyes! Those sunken cheeks everyone recognized all around the world. His very expression conveyed power! Yet, deep inside King trembled; the only reason he didn't run away was that his legs refused to answer his call. He was literally too scared to move!

"Wh-why should I… even if you…"

"Are you deaf?" King's stance was seemingly relentless. Not moving an inch. "I am King. The Strongest Man On Earth." He only hoped that his bluff will work like it usually does. And that this would've be enough to turn away this creature.

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

Now, even the human turned monster started to tremble.

"Give up all hope. Give up on me... Just leave. I ask you, please..."

"Wha-what!?"

"Stay away from me and find another hero, that would be a smart thing to do. You only earn disappointment here. Death is an ugly thing. I ask you again, please."

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

His form grew and grew in the eyes of the monster; the pressure this man released was unimaginable. Even the humans around made their distance. They all knew too well what would happen if King started to fight.

"H-He is really The Strongest Man On Earth!"

"The legends are not an exaggeration..."

"He is amazing!"

The people around once again started cheering for him. Why couldn't they understand what he meant? Why did they misinterpret his every word?

"No matter how hard I try. It is not possible! You can't expect anything from me; it's useless… fighting with me only earns you disappointment and shame! Please, just leave…"

"Ah! Ahhhhh!"

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

Now, before the monster, a colossus stood. His form relentless, towering above the insect that the owl was. Unbreakable! Unconquerable! The monster faced not a mere hero, but an invincible being! The Strongest Man!

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

The king engine roared relentlessly, filling dread and terror in every monster around, even those skulking in the darkness.

"Di-Die!" The owl threw his book, yet, because of his fear, the book missed King's head only by an inch. Yet, the man's face changed not, not even trying to dodge. It was like the book thrown at him knew very well; it couldn't hurt a being like King.

"Wha-What!? I never miss! How could this-"

"Please..."

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

Victory was impossible! The Library Owl already admitted his own mistake. He was not the monster... It was this man in front of him!

"Ah! Ahhh! Please spare me!"

"Useless! Please, just leave!"

In the next moment, the owl started to run, crying in vain. Even if he dies, he will try his luck.

"Please! Spare me!"

Only to have the book which he threw previously came back, forcefully ricocheting from a building, and beheading the creature itself.

_Splash!_

Headless, the owl man collapsed, books sprouting from his bag thrown away when his body limply fell on the ground. One of the books directly slid before King's leg.

_"Huh!?"_

_"It actually worked!? How did it even work_!?" King asked himself again and again, yet, gained no answer. Like usual. He was both cursed and blessed. More cursed than blessed, in his opinion.

"Ohhhh!"

"King saved us!"

"He is the best!"

"He didn't even move! This is amazing!"

_"Please, no… not again…"_ King wanted to cry, collapsing on his knees.

"Mr. Ki-King, are you alright?"

"Not again..." he muttered, his expression empty, all hope was lost!

"He must be disappointed. Not finding a worthy challenger..."

"Yes, that must be the case."

"Right..."

And just like that, the people decided on this absurd story in their heart, watching their hero still on his knees.

"Not again..." King muttered again, only to recognize the book before his leg.

"This…" The book was labeled: The Four Heroes Weapons Manual.

"Weird…"

"Mr. King! You did it again! You are awesome!" the people cheered all around, celebrating their hero.

"Don't worry; I am sure you will find a worthy challenger soon!"

Yet, King was too enamored skimming through the book he just found.

[An apocalyptic catastrophe coming with the wave…]

He turned a page.

[… to save the world from destruction, four cardinal heroes will be summoned from another world.]

What a cliché fantasy opening, an Isekai nonetheless, King thought. Still, he turned one more page. He was no fan of the genre, though he learned early on not to give up on books that easily. There were hidden diamonds in the rough, sometimes.

A myriad of games and manga of those genres became his favorite after he forced himself to read a few chapters at least.

[Every hero carries a weapon. A sword. A spear. A bow and a shield.]

Well, if it's a fantasy novel, he would rather use magic, but it was up to the book. According to his RPG knowledge, classes using shields become pretty invincible in the late game.

"How bland…"

"M-Mr. King!" ignoring the people around, continued to read. No one dared to stop him, or disturb his 'meditation', he was The Strongest Man On Earth, King! Any disturbances might cost the lives of everyone on the street!

"What dull illustration…" Basically, there was no coloring, just a few silhouettes which depicted humans. Among them was a woman who looked like the princess.

"Hmm, a typical-looking princess… I wonder what her personality will be."

Reading a few more pages, the spear, the sword and the bow hero all had quite the detailed description.

_"This book seems more like a role player guidebook than a novel? Yes, that's right… it's all filled with description about the playable characters…"_ he knew them too well, he read too many such books.

"Wonder what the shield cast will be…" Yet, when he turned a page...

"Eh?" it was empty. The page which should contain the information about the shielder was blank. Just like every other page after it.

_"What a cheap book. They want the reader to fill in the blanks?"_ King was about to throw it away when the pages started to glow; the whole book shone in a golden light.

"What the…!?"

"What is this!?"

"Mr. King! What's happening!?"

**'RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE!'**

The King Engine roared its loudest. Perhaps, the last time in this world.

That day, The World's Strongest Man, the Heroes' Hero, The Strongest Man On Earth, King disappeared from City M! Many people watched as their greatest hero was engulfed in a bright light, leaving only the air in his place.

"M-Mr. King!"

"He... he disappeared!"

"Quickly! We need to notify the Hero Association!"

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**Scene Change:**

"Ugh!"

"Oh! The summoning was a success!"

The voice of a man hit King's ears at the moment he landed.

_"I feel like I was hit by a truck_…" Not like he'd know how it'd feel. He DID however read many stories where the protagonist was killed by a truck and then sent or reincarnated into another world. It was a really cheap way of sending them to their next destination. Still, it was so cliché and expected that the otaku community started calling them by nicknames like 'Truck-kun'.

_"Ugh… Wait, where am I_!?" King looked around hastily; he was in a room that looked like a typical summoning chamber, and before him, four robed men stood.

"Heroes! Please, save this world!"

Heroes? What the heck?! This is some kind of bad dream? He wasn't a hero! — Well, his job description was literally hero, but he didn't even have the power to back it up! Not even the courage! How would he even save the world!?

_"Who are these guys anyway_?" Standing up and looking around, the summoning circles under his feet were still wholly lit.

_"Yeah… this must be a bad dream. Right. That, or this is one of those camera shows where people can see my reactions in real life. But where are the cameras? Are they hidden? And who are those three with the weapons?"_

King was not sure how they kidnapped him. The last thing he saw was that weird book starting to glow, then he found himself in this room.

Yeah.. yeah! This must be some kind of reality show where people's reactions were recorded under pre-scripted circumstances.

Of course, that was the only logical conclusion, after all. The only problem is… if he exposed himself here, people would beat him up for lying to them; worse, he'd lose his only source of income. Before becoming a hero, he never even had a normal job. What would he do if he loses even _that_?

_'Gulp!'_

No matter how stressful it was to play a hero, he couldn't expose himself here. He would definitely die if he did!

_"But considering things. It would be better if they just beat me up once, then leave me alone after…" _King thought, but shook it off afterwards. As much as he hated crowds, he wasn't willing to be beaten up and have his only source of income cut from him in order for peace and quiet.

His three other companions that appeared near him were carrying different weapons. All three of them looked quite young compared to him. Heck, they looked like they belonged in high-school.

_"Who are these guys anyway…?"_ King scratched his face, only to recognize the thing stuck on his forearm.

"Eh?" It was a shield. Quite bland in design, a green jewel stuck in the middle of it. _"What kind of sick fantasy play it is? And can't even let me choose a class? How rude!"_

Although he was an avid gamer who quickly learned every class and gameplay mechanism he ever encountered, he hated it when the system forced a role to him. He played games for the adventure, for the freedom of choice. To push a class to someone? That was just a lousy gameplay design. Now that he thought about it, there weren't any games that he had ever played that forced someone to pick a class, and be simultaneously a good game at the same time.

_"Although shields aren't bad… I wanted to play as a magic caster. Either way, there must be a boss around. I just ask about it later. And what did they call me just now? Hero…?"_

"Umm… excuse me. I think it's some kind of…" but before he could inquire about the situation, he was cut off, just like that!

"Heroes! Please, save this world!" his words were cut immediately, the desperate looking magic caster begged once more, his face filled with terror.

"What do you mean?" the kid with the bow asked, King could only listen. Maybe if he learnt more about all of what was happening, he could come up with something.

"This is a long story… using an ancient ritual, we summoned you."

Now, this really sounds cliché. Summoned them! The heck!?

"Excuse me… I think it is a misunderstanding. Can't I just go home? I have a lot of things to do. I never volunteered for this show."

"Unfortunately, that's impossible, brave hero. Once the four cardinal heroes are summoned, we can't send them back."

"I-I see…" What did he think? When he speaks, it will all end up worse! Just like always, people exaggerated everything. Still, one thing was still strange, the people weren't quivering in their shoes and let him go when he asked. Usually, it always works, people leaving him alone once he asked — stepping away trembling.

_"Weird…"_ But King thought nothing about it; most likely, these guys really want to impress him or cared more about their role than their life. Either was a possibility.

One way or another, all of this started to feel like he is in that book he read before that light kidnapped him — with the four heroes and the princess.

_"I hope the princess is cute, at least…"_ Keeping his cold face, King inwardly blushed, imagining the role play he could do with the 'princess'.

"Our world is on the edge of ruin. Great heroes, please help us. Please, save our world."

The scholar guy in the middle really gave his all, King must admit. He never saw such performance.

"I see… in that case…"

"I refuse."

What!?

He right away glanced the guy with the spear.

_"You can't just refuse a heroic quest!? That's not how the script should go!"_

"I agree… send us back." said the bow bearer.

"Don't you feel guilty kidnapping random strangers without their consent?" Raising his sword, the boy with black hair glared threatening at the scholars.

_"Dammit! None of them are playing along? What the heck!?"_

"What if you just discard us once the peace restored? What guarantees you don't get rid of us?" once more, the guy with the bow spoke, he had curly blonde hair, quite messy if you asked King. His face was young, maybe in his early teens.

_"They even make kids play?"_ He had to admit, their performance was exceptional.

"What can you offer us in exchange?"

This was too much! The script for this show was awful!

Not only the heroes were unfriendly, but they demanded payment at the beginning of their quest?

Playing many RPGs and many other kinds of games, King was aware; no games allowed you to play like that. You complete the quest, gain XP, then reap the reward. That's it! No forward payment!

Not even aware of the difficulty or the rules and demanding payment? Absurd! He wanted to go home. He wanted his money back!

"Depending on the answer, we can turn against you."

And now this! The blonde with the spear even threatening the quest giver. This was too much.

"Don't you agree?" and now he asked him? Why they couldn't they just leave him alone!?

"Hmm, I think we should listen to what they want to say first, then decide…" King answered, trying to remain neutral. "Anyway… what kind of show is this, if I may ask? I don't remember volunteering. Please, just show me the exit. I have many things to do."

By many things, he meant playing games, reading manga and books, mostly lazing about at home.

"Show?" the scholars before them blinked, looking at each other confused.

"I assure you, Hero of the Shield. This is not a show. All of this is serious! Our world is in grave danger!"

"Right…" he was the one to blame daring to ask. Why did he even ask? It never works! Yet, King was more and more impressed with their performance. They didn't quiver like ordinary people when he urges them to leave him alone. No, their expression even hardened, daring to defy him.

_"Is it possible they don't know who I am?"_

"Please, everything will be explained. We would like you to meet the king of our country…"

Country? King raised his brow. According to his best knowledge, for a long time, there are no longer any countries in his world. Just humongous cities and the wilderness separating them. Since the appearance of monsters, this was the case.

"And this country name is…"

"Me-Melromarc!" that cold, emotionless look, that "evil" face the shield hero offered honestly scared the summoners out of their wits!

"Melromarc?"

"Me-Melromarc, Shield Hero."

It was strange; he'd never read or heard about this Melromarc. It was rare he couldn't recognize a name from a fantasy or games. Still, he was not all-knowing. The book was unknown to him. However, it was strange that the name was completely foreign to him. It didn't even ring any bells.

"You can ask him about your reward, heroes. I am sure; you can come with an agreement with him."

"Very well…" King hummed, he can't do anything anyway. He asked nicely, and it didn't work. What more a hero can do? He was not strong enough to force anything onto anyone.

"Agreed."

"We can consider their offer, after all…"

"Not as our demands will change. No matter who we speak to."

This spear guy really was too demanding. Either his character was written like that, or the actor was just a punk.

Nonetheless, King followed the scholars, walking behind the three guys. Their way led up to a circular stairway, the tower was quite old looking, he only saw similar towers in history books and national landmarks.

"Oh…" looking out, even the buildings were different. Medieval-looking, almost like he was in the Renaissance age. It was as if he was in an entirely different world!

"Must be holograms."

"Hmm, I think it is a different world. Even holograms can't give back this much detail." King hummed after listening to what the bow guy had to say, albeit, he had to disagree. The devices made by Metal Knight and Child Emperor can pretty much copy reality into a hologram. Even the commercially released ones could mimic images to the last hair.

_"Or, did they simply built a whole city worth of scenery?" _It was a big waste if you asked him. The possibility that he was transported to a different world was never considered in the first place.

_"That would be ridiculous_…" like those cheap Isekai novels he read when he was younger. Most of them were bland and poorly made. Overpowered self-inserts made up almost all of them.

The wind coming through the metal bars signified the tower was real, as well the cold touch of metal bars and the stone bricks of the walls were all real.

_"They really did good work with this."_ He could only imagine how much all of this cost. Such castles were either inhabited by monsters or destroyed long ago. Not many remained intact... that is, in human hands.

_"It's no surprise… against monsters, such primitive defensive structures kinda useless."_

Chuckling lowly, King followed his guide, passing a courtyard, and soon they reached what looked like a throne room.

_"They even bought metal armors that old_?" No matter how he looked at them and how closely he scrutinized, those guards were incredibly realistic. Their armor and posture spoke volumes about training. The noble ladies and lords all looked exceptional, dressed in fine clothes that must've cost a fortune.

Moreover, the whole throne room just looked excessively decorated. Too detailed for a simple show. Moment by moment, a bad feeling started to resurface in King. A lousy precognition, that he may have really be transported to an entirely different place, far from his home. Far from the Heroes Association. Far from any credible hero that could save the day for him...

...Far from Saitama.

_"No…"_ And with each moment, this impossible possibility started to gain confirmation. _"This can't be happening! This must be a joke! Right! A joke!"_

"So, you are the four cardinal heroes." On the throne, an old-looking figure sat, wearing what looked like a crown, and typical fantasy royal attire. "I am the king of Melromarc, Aultcray Melromarc of XXXII."

_"What a fancy name…"_ Though, under fantasy settings, it was quite normal using fancy names.

"Heroes, introduce yourself."

"Ren Amaki, sixteen years old, High-schooler." Introduced the swordsman. He had dark hair and blue eyes.

"I am Motoyasu Kitamura. Twenty-one year old college student." the blonde with ponytail and the spear over his shoulder introduced.

"I am next! Itsuki Kawasumi, seventeen year old high school student." the one with the bow introduced.

_"Just seventeen? He looks much younger_." King raised his brow in surprise. That guy looked a lot younger, with that baby face like that, and green eyes, he definitely thought he was around 14 or 15. Hell, he was comparable to even Child Emperor in stature.

_"Well, it is my turn now. Do I ask permission to leave? How should I introduce myself?"_

As he rattled his brain on this, the king had already proceeded, ignoring The Strongest Man completely.

"Ren, Motoyasu, and Itsuki, right?"

_"I can't even introduce myself…"_ King offered his usual expression. Empty, and threatening for most. But it was his usual face, he couldn't do anything about it. "_Maybe I should ask for plastic surgery…"_

Ignored so rudely? But what could he do? Speak up? No! That would only raise the attention of others. If this really was a different world, he doesn't want others to recognize him.

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

"What is this… noise?" the king of Melromarc blinked suddenly, as the "King Engine" started.

_"No! Not again! Stupid heart! Stop!"_

"I-I think it's coming from him." The three heroes distanced themselves from King, as a dark, overbearing feeling was emitted from his direction.

"Wha-what's the meaning of this? Shield hero?" the king asked, never seeing that cold, menacing, pitying expression as the Shield Hero offered just now. Even looking at him filled him with some kind of uneasiness — even as a former adventurer, no monster had ever offered him that scary glare before.

"What's that expression!?"

"Are you threatening the king?" right away, the surrounding guards pointed their weapons against him. Yet, King remained unmoved.

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

It was not out of courage; it was his fright that made him rooted to the ground.

"What do you mean!?"

"Ahh!"

"Wha…!?"

"Is he preparing a destructive spell?"

"What's this noise!?"

"Shield Hero, what's the meaning of this? Are you trying to offend us?!"

Now, with most of the weapons pointed against The Strongest Man, his heart rate increased marginally.

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

"It is rude… to ignore others." He glanced at the closest guard. All weapons were pointed against him… so close? It was more than unnerving! He was terrified!

"Ah…" and the trained soldier backed, seeing the 'fearless', straight expression the man offered. Not a muscle moved on that face! He looked as if the wasn't threatened by the weapons- nay, bored, even!

"…"

He didn't fear them! He pitied the fools that dared to come close! At least, that how most depicted that unmoving, menacing expression of his.

"Ah… please forgive me, Shield Hero. Introduce yourself, then." Aultcray tried to keep a straight face, but nonetheless he was sweating. The pressure this man exerted by his mere stare was enormous. Even as a former adventurer, he was not sure he would dare to make a move against him.

"Hey, don't be so rude, he is a king, after all…" Itsuki tried to scold the Rank 7 S-Class Hero, but this only earned a stare. A stare capable of making any rational Demon-Level threats wet themselves in fear.

"Is that so?"

"Ye-yeah… right." This guy was extremely scary! Once again forcing the heroes around him to back away.

"Then what should I call him? Will 'Your Majesty' do?" Yes, that how kings or queens were called in games and films. That should be right. Right?

"Ki-King is enough, hero…" Aultcray waved to the guards, and they lowered their weapons. Without a doubt, this man looked menacing and highly dangerous. His posture might look like one full of openings. But it can also mean he found them too weak to consider them a threat; he was not afraid at all.

The noble ladies and lords — wearing fancy dresses and clothes — were no better; they as well felt the overbearing pressure this man exerted.

"Whatever… I am King. S-Rank Hero from the Heroes Association."

"King?"

"Hero?"

"S-Rank…?"

He messed it up! Again, he messed up! He was so accustomed to introducing himself like this; it came out automatically. But what could he do now? If he tries to change it, he will be mocked and kicked around! He was so scared; he could barely think!

"_Cough_… Shield Hero, this is a really bad joke. Are you trying to mock me? Please introduce yourself normally."

"I introduced myself already… I am King. Hero, S rank. Number 7." With that, he stepped back. Even if he tried again, people will just repeat weird things! They'd most likely not believe what he said. It always happens like this.

_"I don't remember how many times I tried to tell people; I am not strong. That all of this is a misunderstanding!" Y_et, due to the mockery of life, people just misunderstood the honest truth he tells them. Thinking he is just humble or joking.

Why should he try then? He will fail anyway. "Please proceed with the explanation. I will decide if it's worth my time or not…"

_"I want to go home!"_

"Tch! You little! Fine then!" Aultcray gritted his teeth hard. He wanted to throw this menacing man in the prison. Unfortunately, he was the Shield Hero. He couldn't just put him behind bars due to some disrespect. He needed a better reason for that, or his dear wife will pull his ear again.

Anyway, this "King" figure looked quite menacing, and Aultcray wanted not to risk his, and the people's life around by trying his luck.

Taking a big breath, the Aultcray continued.

"Our nation, Melromarc, the whole word edges in extinction…"

Thus, the king explained the situation.

"So, an apocalyptic prophecy, divining the end of the world." King hummed, this, sounded too typical.

"Basically… the enemy will attack in waves, each of these waves ruining the world more and more. Until our world will be no more."

If he transported into a different world, he wanted to go home. He was not ready to play the hero, less, save a whole world! HE WAS NOT HERO AT ALL! Also, could it not be a less ideal fantasy world he was thrown in right now?

_"So… even if I run away, it'll accomplish nothing."_ King wept internally. He wanted to hide, leave all of this to a more qualified person. "_Why was Saitama not summoned? He would solve this issue in no time! Me… I can't even walk around without pissing myself in fear."_ He really wished his friend would be around; without him, he had no chance to survive even a simple monster attack. Hell, he was the reason he was still breathing today!

Continuing, the king also mentioned an ancient Hourglass, each nation owning one. This device could divine the arrival of the waves precisely.

_"Great, now I know the date of my death. Isn't this beautiful…?" M_ore and more, despair started to clutch his heart. Only sarcasm kept the man afloat.

The worst part was: the first wave was already finished. Leaving the country in ruins before the knights and adventurers defeated it.

If it was able to ruin a whole country, what did they expect from him? Fighting an army alone? Absurd!

Also, according to the king, the waves would become stronger and stronger each time they come! What did he expect from him!? Fight something a whole army was unable to handle on his own?

He was not as strong as Superalloy Darkshine or Puri Puri Prisoner. He was not as smart as Metal Knight or Child Emperor, he didn't have body modifications like the Demon Cyborg or Drive Knight. Hell, he can't even use weapons like Atomic Samurai. Nor did his body work weird like Pig God's or Zombieman's! The only thing special about him was his strong heartbeats! His only skills were to play games and bluff his way out of trouble!

_"Yeah… I'll just hide. Wait things out. I might die, but at least I win a little time before I die." _Hopefully, one of the brains of the Heroes Association recognized his disappearance and found a way to bring him back. That's was his only chance. They wouldn't leave behind an S-Rank, would they?

_"Yeah… my luck was never that good…"_

It was quite unlikely considering the possibility this was another world. Still, a man can hope, no?

Currently, he and the rest of the heroes had one month to prepare. King had one month more to live.

_"I don't want to die!"_ No matter how miserable his life was, he'd rather live than die. He feared death, like everyone else. After all, who wouldn't? Well, Zombieman, maybe, but he wasn't him!

"We underestimated the intensity of the waves. Facing such circumstances, we couldn't handle it anymore. It has escalated to a situation only the four cardinal heroes can handle from now on. Thus, we followed the guidance of the ancient text and summoned you."

_"You don't say…_" King's eyes widened, remembering the book. "_Why did I even pick it up!? Or even opened it!? Who picks up random books dropped from monsters!?"_

Then he remembered, everyone in an RPG.

_"Nooooo! I should've avoided dangerous situations! Yet, I fall into the most obvious trap!? Why, me!?"_

This was too much! He couldn't handle this! This was too much responsibility pushed onto him! Why him!? Why not others!? Other people who could handle it!

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

Even his heart throbbed harder. He can't take this much longer!

"Hmm, I don't know what is this sound you emit, Shield Hero. But if I had to guess, it is your bloodlust pumping. Don't worry; you will have enough time fighting against the monsters… your willingness, however, is appreciated. "

The hell this is his bloodlust! His heart just beat louder than others! That's it!

"Chill down… King, is it?" Motoyasu patted his back, grinning, only earning a death stare. One capable of killing monsters, both literally and figuratively. Many monsters once surrendered themselves to the Heroes Association simply because he was there. He quite literally ended their careers. There was even one time he killed a monster by _scaring _it to death! The first kill in his entire Hero career.

"There is nothing to 'chill' about. Monsters are not child play… they are dangerous to face."

"Ah... Ahhh!"

"He is right, we need to prepare." the sword hero nodded, agreeing with him.

"Right! When do we start?" Before King could say anything more, all agreed.

_"I can't even say no?!"_ his mouth just refused to move at that moment. He was basically rooted to the place. Anyway, the choice was already made. The only thing he can do was run away.

Saying no would only end up backfiring on him anyway. Whatever he says, he can't get out from this situation unscathed.

_'Gulp!'_

"Of course, we do not do this without any reward." the spear hero once more spoke his mind.

"We will not risk our life for free…" the sword hero, if King remembered his name right, Ren Amaki announced.

_"How selfless…"_ these guys were definitely not the textbook heroes — more like mercenaries.

"Naturally…" A villainous-looking scrawny and pale noble — standing on the king's side, nodded. A fox-like smile visible on his face the whole time. "We will amply reward you once the last wave is defeated."

"Hmm, that's sounds fair." Motoyasu nodded.

"We will work together with you, assuming you will not backstab us. But don't think you can control us like simple dolls." this Amaki guy was just suspicious, though not as King would be any different.

"He said it right. We will not allow you to look down on us."

"…" King remained silent; his iron expression showed no emotion.

"Splendid! In that case, heroes, please, check your status."

"Status?" King looked at his side, with the exception of the sword hero; his companions looked confused.

"What?"

"Didn't you recognize it? You should have recognized at the moment you arrived. A small icon in the bottom right section of your vision?"

_"What is this? Am I thrown in an RPG world_?" King tried to concentrate on the small icon, and right away, his status appeared.

_"Like an augmented reality glass."_ When he met Bofoi personally — aka Metal Knight — he recognized he had something similar implanted in his eye. It was smaller than Sekingar's bionic eye, but probably a hundred times more advanced.

_"That guy is crazy…"_ not as the other S class would be better, all of them were weirdos. More like monsters than real humans. Long ago they broke their own limits and became something more than a mere mortal.

**Name**: King, "The World's Strongest Man!"

He wanted to cry; even his status mirrored this lie! No! Reading further, it even mocked him! What kind of RPG is this? Even his status mocks him!?

**Age: 29**

**Hero of Shield**

**Status:**

**Attack: 11**

**Magic: 13**

**Physical resistance: 10**

**Magical resistance: 15**

**Skill: Not displayable**

**Resistances: (basically zero...)**

**Equipment: a bag filled with manga, video games, and anime: the source of infinite knowledge**

**Regular clothes: Invincible armor**

**King's purse: Very dangerous...**

…

**_Level 1_**

King was well aware, every normal RPG your character starts at level 1. Yet, it was disappointing. In most Isekai novels, the protagonist always started out overpowered. It would be a lot better if it would be the same in his case too.

Yet, he was not lucky. He could never win!

_"I need to learn how much these stats are worth here_…" His stats might be looked low now, but he was not sure how this system measured strength here. The worth of each stat varied from game to game. It might be that these few stats are worth great deal here, but also it was possible he was the weakest, he didn't know.

"Hmm, it is concerning..." Itsuki muttered, pondering.

"Yeah, we can't fight like this."

"Is this some kind of game?" King asked next. No matter how he looked it, this seemed like some weird augmented reality game mixed with live role-play.

"This is not a game, I assure you, the Hero of the Shield." the king hummed.

"Then what is this… status?"

"It is status magic, only available for heroes." answered the fox-like man on the king's side, his hair all white. Like the king, he was well past the glory of his life.

"I see…" Yeah, this was an RPG world. Why was he so surprised? He was never the lucky one.

_"But at least, hopefully, I can use my knowledge here. If I level up fast, I can avoid danger."_ King was an avid gamer, even winning many competitions when he was younger. His years spent before his console and PC will finally pay out!

"You will all go on missions, to respectively upgrade and strengthen yourself and your weapons."

Yeah, like an RPG. Or any other kind of game. You complete quests, gain EXP and level up. Upgrade your equipment. King only hoped he could use different weapons too. Sticking with this shield would only hinder him. He was always a man who kept multiple backup weapons in all cases — Maxing them all out.

If it's not a challenge run, he rarely used starting weapons past the first 10 minutes.

_"Assuming, I go along with this nonsense and not run away_…" Assuming it is like in a game, he should try to level up a little bit. Admittedly, at a higher level, he had more chances to survive this ordeal.

_"I have no skill with weapons. Nor skills with martial arts. What to do?"_ Even when Atomic Samurai challenged him, he couldn't even pull out his katana. The mere attempt to release the sword from its sheath strained his muscles to the limit.

Asking Bang to train him also earned a rejection — saying, he was too advanced the old man to teach. It was all a lie! The only martial art he knew he learned from films and games he watched!

"Then, we need to train ourselves…" the Hero of the Sword said so.

King spaced out for a few moments, not hearing what they spoke about.

"Then, we need to level up as much we can," Itsuki added, smiling friendly.

"Right…" hummed King. Partying up would be beneficial. If so, he should just be the tank, relied on to aggro the enemies while the DPS classes like the archer, spearman and swordsman killed off the rest.

The shield is good for defense, the spear to attack multiple enemies from a relative distance, the sword to strike and eliminate dangerous foes quickly, the bow to support others from far, and remove hazardous enemies from a greater range.

It was a typical RPG group composition. Only a healer — or a magic caster — was what their party missed to be complete.

"Partying up would be beneficial."

"You are right…"

"Unfortunately, that's impossible, heroes."

"Why so?" Ren glared at the noble near the king, earning a sight.

"You all will form parties. Adventuring and gaining experience alone."

"This sounds… not beneficial whatsoever. The party composition is already ready."

King defied this statement, why should they party up with others? Small parties are a lot more effective when it comes to leveling than big mobs. And the number four… that was just the right number for a leveling party, their weapons, armor and skills as well rightly complemented each others weaknesses.

"Unfortunately, the legend says the legendary weapons would cancel each other out, making it impossible to gain experience and upgrade them effectively. Thus, the heroes can't adventure together. Only when the waves come, they can truly work together."

_"What kind of a messed up system is this?!" _King wanted to shout. In every game, such rules existed not, as it would hinder the adventure. Why would it exist here? It made no sense!

_"This world is getting more and more messed up…"_

"The sun is setting soon. Retire for today. Rest well, and collect your strength for tomorrow. In the meantime, we will collect those who you can form a party with. The best people our kingdom can offer." Aultcray nodded towards a lady, who stepped closer.

"We already prepared your rooms. Please, follow me."

As they proceeded at the upper levels, King heard the murmurs of the guards, speaking about how surprising it was all four heroes were summoned in their country. Their tone implying his presence was not entirely desirable.

_"That's my luck…"_ he sweated, despite all of this pomp, he'd sooner return to his home than spend another day here.

_"Unfortunately, I don't know where I am, or where should I go…"_ He tried his mobile phone multiple times. The phone was said to be able to connect directly to any provider — even the private satellite network of the Hero Association.

Yet, strangely, he can't reach anyone. That phone should be able to call anyone from anywhere. Metal Knight made it after all. Yet, it found no service provider here, neither any were there signals to connect to.

_"That means…"_ _'Gulp!'_ that means he really was not on Earth anymore. A completely different world!

_"Why me…!?"_

Even if he escapes, his money not likely accepted here, nor he was strong enough to fight alone or survive long enough. _"I am in big trouble…"_ indeed, he was just a simple human. Why would anyone want to summon him? Why would anyone want to party with him? He was useless in a real fight!

…

Soon after their respective rooms were introduced to them, the maids called them to a late supper. As it was expected, King was too nervous to eat anything. He felt that if he tried to stuff those delicious looking meals down, he would throw them up right away.

_"Pig God would eat them out from their riches though…"_ That fatty always stuffed his mouth whenever he saw him. Never exchanged more than a few words with him, though.

"Man! That was a plentiful meal! I stuffed!" Motoyasu patted his stomach, his face happy. "Now, this is really the treatment that heroes deserve!"

Now, as their meal was finished, the four inhabited a bedroom each, almost as big as his modest apartment in City M.

"_What is this size?"_ he felt nervous even being in there, it was just too open.

"The girl who led us our room was lovely too…!" Also… this Motoyasu guy. Couldn't he just shut up?! He just went on and on and on, but said absolutely nothing useful. As his situation wasn't bad enough, now he had to listen to this idiot too!

"I agree, our meals were quite good. Although, it was a little bit strange." And the bow guy was another one. Too sweet, like a playboy. A goody-two-shoes guy who wanted to hide something.

"It is quite bad you didn't try any, Mr. King, was it? You missed a great meal."

_"Almost like Sweet Mask…"_ That man! Something was not right with him, hiding something under the sweet surface. King always had goosebumps whenever he was near.

"This is like a damn game… I swear." King muttered, inspecting his stats, again and again, ignoring the statement of the blonde. In truth, the entire time, he was busy reading the guide the status magic offered.

"Well, maybe this really is a game. Like, Emerald Online."

"Never heard of it…" And this was something, considering his favorite hobby and addiction was gaming. One can say he knows about almost every game ever released.

"What? It is super popular!" Motoyasu raised his brow, finding it weird the man didn't hear about it. Even old geezers would know about that game.

"What are you talking about? This is like a console game world! Not a simple online game. Its name is Dimension Web." Itsuki corrected his colleague, smiling like always.

"Never heard of it…"

"You are wrong; this is a VRMMO, just like Brave Star Online."

"Never heard of it…" This was even weirder! His world didn't have VRMMOs released commercially. _"Something similar is under development, as I overheard when Metal Knight and Child Emperor's discussion. But for military purposes. These guys are all deluded."_

"This is all like a game. Yet, I don't think a VRMMO can be this detailed." King muttered, thinking things through.

"What do you mean?"

"How should an old geezer like you know?"

"Is your name really King?"

These questions again… he already had enough of this. Because of his looks, many think he is older, yet, in truth, he was just 29.

"I just play a lot of games and read quite a few manga." He wasn't willing to answer their stupid questions anymore. He already answered them during their meal — partially.

"A few games and books have similar plot-lines. People summoned from another world and chosen to be heroes. They're really cliché, so I don't like them."

"Yeah… Mr. King is right; I also know a few." Itsuki hummed, caressing his chin.

"Let's compare our general knowledge then." Motoyasu offered.

"Who is on the thousand-yen banknote?" Everyone said their answer, all of them different.

"Who?"

"Who?"

"Who?"

"Who?"

Questions followed questions, none of their answers matched.

Later….

_"This is bad…!_" Sitting on his bed, in his own room, King was sweating tears. None of their answers had matched. All of them came from a different timeline, different worlds. None he could connect to.

"But maybe it's a good thing… at least I don't have to lie anymore." For a moment, his heart eased up. Only for a moment though, as in the next…

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

_"What the hell should I do!? I'm all alone! I have nowhere to go! This thing is all messed up!"_ They don't even know anything about City M, or any of those colossal metropolises that covered the whole world. Tokyo? What the heck was that? No Heroes Association? What the heck? No monsters!?

King raised his head in the next moment. "I really envy them…"

Yes, one thing he was envious about their world. The lack of monsters and strange beings in each of their realities. Only humans. It sounded pretty peaceful. It was less likely they would jump at you and tear you apart! There was less stress he would be exposed to.

_"I find one thing strange though_…" They tried to prove at all costs that shield-type classes were the worst. That they were among the weakest. King, however, had to disagree. Anyone who has played at least one RPG was well aware that a steadily built defense-based character can be pretty powerful, if not invincible with the right gear and build!

Such classes could even muster out respectable damage. Hell, if made accordingly with the proper knowledge and balance, every class was just as good as the other.

_"It is complete nonsense, saying one class is better than the other…"_ Every class had their own strengths and weaknesses, and they were made for different purposes. Everything about the character depended on the role, usage and skill of the player.

A game balance where one class is deliberately made weaker is unheard of. In any MMO or online game where balance is continuous, this was even more so.

_"It's almost strange how vehemently they tried to prove me wrong…"_ Of course, being the true master of all types of games — be it MMORPG, Open-World RPG, fighting games, hell, even gacha — he debunked their reasons one after another. Almost going as far to convince them — before that Motoyasu guy had enough, stomping out from the room raging in a tantrum. Muttering something like: "How should this old geezer know?" It was as if all of them hated shield-type classes, or at least had a strange bias against them for some reason.

_"Groan..._ I'm exhausted…" looking up at the ceiling; King was completely fatigued. Too much happened in under a day.

"Let's hope that when I wake up, I will find myself back in my bed. I just want this to be a bad dream…"

King laid down on his bed, trying to sleep, yet, he was unable to do so. All night, he barely slept. Only rolling on his over-sized bed. Thinking back on everything that happened today. First that Owl monster, now this?

"Aw man… I wanna quit being a Hero..." He closed his eyes, soon falling asleep.

"Shield Hero! Shield Hero!" As the sun rose, a female voice called for him.

_"Yawn… _Just let me sleep…"

"Shield Hero? Shield Hero!" Now, something was nudging him, King awoke hugging his pillow, drooling slightly.

"Huh?" he blinked sleepily, his sight slowly clearing.

"Good morning!" The maid smiled, leaning closer. King just laid back his head before catching up again.

"Isn't this supposed to be a dream or something?"

"Uh... what do you mean, Shield Hero?"

"Just as I suspected…" Yep, he was never lucky. He could only smile as invisible tears were pouring from his eyes — his mood completely depressed. _"I just wanna go home... I wanna quit being a Hero!"_

* * *

**A/N:**

**Well, that's it.**

**I hope it was enjoyable.**

**I tried to write King the best I can; I don't know if I managed to nail him completely!**

**Hopefully, it was good enough.**

**This most likely just a one shot. If there will be a second chapter, that will be decided later.**

**As said, it depends on the popularity and my mood to write.**

**Anyway…**

**RnR!**

**Read and Review! Send PM if you have a question.**

**Sail safe! Goodbye! Safe winds!**

**The usual!**


	2. Legend of the Screaming Hero

**Written by Oblivon2991**

**Proofread: The usual drunken gang of misfits and Transcended Potato**

**Thank you for reading my fanfiction and for giving me a chance.**

**My mother tongue isn't English, so please be patient about the grammatical issues.**

**I don't own One Punch Man anime/manga/webcomic, it belongs to ONE.**

**I don't own The Rising of the Shield Hero (Japanese: ****盾の勇者の成り上がり****, Hepburn: Tate no Yūsha no Nariagari), it is written by Aneko Yusagi.**

**If you have anything to add or have questions, or remark, please review, or send a PM.**

**Thank you!**

**Now let's start the story!**

* * *

**Chapter 2: Legend of the Screaming Hero**

* * *

"What do you mean, King disappeared!?" A tall man in a business suit and slicked back brown hair glared at his subordinate. If that glare wasn't scary enough, his prosthetic eye was focused directly on the simple operator before him.

"I-It is just as I said, Mr. Sekingar!" The operator and his co-workers gulped, rarely seeing their usually-kind superior so angry. "According to the eye-witnesses and reports, King disappeared that day. Swallowed by some kind of light."

The operator room was settled deep inside of the Heroes Association's heart, in the newly minted reinforced building made by Metal Knight himself. In aesthetic terms, it was very futuristic. In rows, the operators sat before their holographic screens and keyboards. All of them working diligently, their fingers never stopping for even a moment, accepting requests and redirecting them to other heroes 24/7.

"Some kind of light? Explain!" Sekingar yelled.

"As I said, reports stated that he disappeared after picking up a book. Then in the next moment, a bright light swallowed him. People uploaded the whole scene!"

"Show me!"

Nodding, yet still sweating profusely from the anger that his superior was showing, the operator standing before Sekingar started the recovered recording, putting it on a large screen.

It showed how King 'effortlessly' — without even moving — defeated the terrible owl monster, making people gape and clasp their mouths in awe.

"The full examination of the body still ongoing. But according to the first tests, that monster was at least Tiger, at worst Demon level."

"Hmm…" Sekingar nodded.

It was not surprising; he pitied the foolish monster that encountered King. This recording perfectly showed why. The man needed not to move a finger to take care of such weaklings. Well, weaklings to King, at least. Demon-level threats were still powerful in their own right.

He simply intimidated the thing enough to make a mistake, attack, then run away. _"Just how does King know what will happen?"_

As the recording showed, King anticipated what would've happen.

Not moving at all, he used the right amount of intimidation to make the monster commit a mistake, a mistake by throwing that book that missed him barely, then entirely rebound back towards the owl and with sheer accuracy, beheading the Owl perfectly.

_"Not only is he the strongest fighter of the Heroes Association, but he's also able to predict the future?" _Possibly, another secret ability of the mysterious Strongest Man. Perhaps he was like Madame Shibawawa, but superior? Even she only managed to divine natural disasters and the like, not to the point where King managed to accurately predict the monster's movements to the very last detail, causing it to decapitate itself.

He needed to relay this information to his superiors. If all of this was true, they needed to consider another promotion for the man — or better said, add this to his already sturdy file. Hundreds of sure-kill moves, an ultimate move capable of wiping Dragon-level threats off the face of the Earth and greatly wound God-level threats, and now the capability to predict the future? If he wasn't worthy of the moniker of 'King', no one was.

Watching the recording further, it showed King picking up the book that just slipped before his feet, reading a few pages. "_What is this? H-he just disappeared!" _Sekingar's eyes widened, seeing the impossible happening in the next moment.

"Is it possible he was transported elsewhere?" The operator looked at his boss uneasily, even the question was blasphemously scary to consider. What would become of City-M if King disappeared? Chaos would surely ensue.

"We tried to make contact with him. No luck until now. Sir, do you think...?"

"No, he is not likely to die from a random book. Most likely, it was some kind of teleportation trigger." At least, he hoped. If King's disappearance came to light, City-M would be swallowed by the monsters and criminals who would think the city was vulnerable due to the disappearance of the city's guardian protector.

_"King was not only a mysterious fighter who carried the title of The World's Strongest Man, but also a symbol. If he disappears, people will start to panic." _Sekingar bit his lip, already anticipating the chaos The Strongest Man's disappearance would bring.

_"Also, the mobile carried by King was made by Metal Knight. The device is supposed to have a connection even on the moon, just as well underground. If that's the case…"_

"I will notify the higher-ups. Send a team to investigate the area as fast as you can."

"Already sent."

"Good! I need to relay this information and call a crisis meeting. What is the state of the city?"

"The people still think it was a new ability King came up with — this might just be the truth. The monsters and criminals have yet to make a move. They're most likely thinking King wants to fool them to strike when they are confident, and then annihilate them in one fell swoop."

"Good! We can't let them gain confidence and attack the now-vulnerable city! Notify the heroes, ask them to protect the city as much as they can! Make a public statement that King is still with us."

"Yes!" The people behind the consoles started to work ever more diligently, typing and sending messages. Social media was a deadly weapon, and the specialists of the Hero Association were professionals, using it to its full capacity.

"Sir, you don't mean...?" The operators gulped, fearing what the man meant.

"We may need the help of other S-Class Heroes." The man with one artificial eye had cold sweat. "If King really disappeared, or in the worst case scenario... died, we need to come up with a contingency plan."

"Yes!"

"Go now!" The assistant left, leaving behind Sekingar, who turned to the holographic screens.

"Where are you, King?"

* * *

**Scene Change:**

Meanwhile, who knows how far away, in a different world, the Strongest Man was sweating bullets.

"This must be some sick joke…" King muttered, glancing around in the lavish dining room.

_"First, the bedpan, now this. I don't know what I did to deserve this." _Although it was the royal palace, there was not even tap water or a normal place to go to relieve himself. All there was for him was just a place with a hole, or that porcelain bowl.

It was expected, he was in a different world — A world with a medieval fantasy-like setting. Yet, he was still completely pissed when he asked about it, and the maid looked at him like he was dumb. Even after clarifying, she just pulled out that china bowl from under his bed.

_"WHAT KIND OF JOKE IS THIS!?" _King was a simple man; all he wants is a quiet place in his life. Food on his table, and of course, warm tap water. _"Online service, my games and hobbies are not to be dismissed."_

Yet, when he woke up this morning, he was still in that cursed room the maids showed him. No internet, no tap water, no toilet... _no games..._

Not to be misunderstood, the room was lavish enough, fitting enough for a royal heir. Still, he preferred his simple apartment. That place was just too big; he felt that a monster could jump out from the corner at any moment. He was too exposed, fearing someone might be hiding behind the corner! Hell, that picture on his wall creeped him out! It was like it followed him with his eyes!

_"First, I thought it was just some bad dream. But now, this seems more like a nightmare! I want to go home!"_

It's not like his home would be more protected from monster attacks, but back in City-M, the civilians and mysterious beings at least knew who he was. Even if they barged into his room, he could most likely hiss them away with a bluff, then call the Hero Association to renovate his home.

Here? Such a thing wouldn't work. No one knew about him!

_"My stomach… I can't take this anymore."_

"Ah, Mr. King. You didn't touch your food, again…" the boy called Itsuki noted, seeing King not eating anything from the lavish amount of food laid out before them.

"Hmm, my stomach is bad for some reason." He could still barely believe that 'baby face' was already seventeen. _"He looks much younger, maybe a little older than Child Emperor, at most!"_

"I see…"

"Why do you look that menacing all the time? You depress me, dude!" Motoyasu quipped, finding the man unnerving. "Smile a little!"

"That's my normal face, that's how I normally look…" And this was not a lie; King himself cursed his looks from time to time. His normal expression was just threatening to others. _"This damn scar just made it all worse!"_

Many said that he got that scar when he battled a God level threat; in truth, it was a major exaggeration. He got it when he was too scared to move, and a monster mangled him before a hero came and saved his life.

_"Thanks again, Saitama!" _King thought. From time to time, he considered that he would prefer to be dead rather than bearing all this strain. He'd get a heart attack from all this stress sooner or later.

"You need to eat; we have an important mission," Ren stated calmly, consuming a small piece of bread.

"I suppose, you are right." King said, stuffing down some food, albeit with difficulty. If it wasn't for his anxiety, he would've been able to stomach the food properly. He was just too damn nervous!

"So, Mr. King, are you from America?"

King almost suffocated on the bite, needing to hit his chest hard to swallow.

"Mhmm!"

"Are you alright?" Itsuki asked, tilting his head.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Was just a shard of bone. What is this 'America' you speak of?"

"You don't know?" Ren raised his brow. He heard the man's answers last night, every one of them were complete nonsense. But not knowing what America was? It was absurd!

_"He is either a pathological liar, or he really does come from an entirely different world."_

"Man! You can't be serious!" Motoyasu quipped. "There is no way you don't know what America is! Be it a different world or not."

"Well, I don't know…" King stated, seemingly calm. Remembering all the nonsense these guys spoke about last night. He can't help but imagine that alternate reality as a weird place.

Countries? Separate continents? What are they even talking about?

The world of King had only one continent. A world only covered by humongous metropolises and cities named after letters. Countries? Such things only exist in history and folk tales. Before the continents joined together a couple hundred years ago, that is.

"We only have one continent and huge cities spanning through the globe." He explained.

"I see." Ren hummed. "So, it is a completely different world."

"It seems so."

Those short answers, and that unchanging expression this guy offered... It honestly unnerved everyone around him.

"Then how come we speak the same language?"

"Don't you know?" King offered a deadpan expression to Motoyasu. "The weapons automatically translate every spoken language."

"Indeed."

"That's the case…" Ren and Itsuki agreed. Skimming the help-page last night, they as well had read about this.

"Damn! Most likely missed it." Muttered the third blonde.

After this, the heroes did not really speak much to each other. King looked left and right, trying to measure his environment most likely, unnerved the latter three.

And thus, not long after finishing their breakfast, the four cardinal heroes proceeded to the same throne room they arrived yesterday.

…

_"The same setting as yesterday…" _The same lavish hall, same elderly king, the same guards and nobles filled the room. Even standing here, King couldn't help but gulp nervously.

_'Gulp!' _Even so, no one had apparently noticed his nervous gulp.

"You may enter now." Aultcray waved his hand regally, inviting the guards to open the doors.

_"He must have a great deal of practice in that move." _Yeah, for King's eyes that only saw such actions in games, movies, or manga, it indeed looked like a practiced move, lacking any real thought in the action.

"Future heroes!" A group of people entered the room, proceeding to move behind the four summoned heroes.

"These are the people who have volunteered to join you on your journey."

"I still think it would be more beneficial to proceed on our own…" King grumbled to himself, seeing all those unknown people. _"Yet, reading the help-page... It stated the same thing as these people. The four weapons hinder each other's growth."_

Unfortunately, thanks to that nonsense rule, they had to continue their journey separately.

"You will grow and strengthen your legendary weapons. It is said that when fellow weapon users are near one another, it will cause the weapons to conflict with each other and impede your growth. As such, I want you to move as separate parties henceforth."

The same thing that sly noble explained yesterday. Just like the rule book of that game-like system stated.

_"It just makes no sense…" _Whomever that designed this game-like system had most likely never played a proper team-based RPG.

"These people have already chosen who they will follow; it would seem."

Glancing at Aultcray, King saw his smile. _"Why do I feel uneasy about it?" _He couldn't help but feel it would not end well for him.

"Now! Select the hero you will attend!" The people King counted had numbered twelve, all lined behind the heroes.

Five courageous adventurers for Ren, three for Itsuki, and four for Motoyasu — strangely, all were girls.

_"Five, plus three, plus four…"_ King made a quick calculation. Yet, glancing behind him; no one stood there!

_"Is this a joke!?" _Even he was surprised. He was well aware that he didn't want to go on an adventure — at least, outside of a virtual environment. But this!? Did the people sense his lack of willingness to go or what!?

_"This is bad…!" _He started to sweat intensely, seriously thinking that he should just leave, and no one would miss him. He was just a miserable guy with the only talent to play games. Who would miss someone like him?

"Is this normal?" He couldn't help it, he had to ask. Maybe these people were just too afraid of his looks to approach him.

"Hmm, it is indeed strange, Shield…" the king did not even call him by his name. What the heck!? "For something such as this to take place. It is probably due to the Hero of the Shield currying little favor among others."

_"Just as suspected…" _King wanted to laugh; his luck always hit in the best places.

"In that case… I will go alone." He couldn't help it, if these people didn't want to join his party, he couldn't force them. He had neither the strength nor was he a tyrannical person to do such a thing. Or, maybe was is better like this. He was never a person who really teamed up with anyone. He was a loner, even in games. He was always that way. Well, except for Saitama. He was a good bro, at least.

"Dude, are you sure? With a shield?" Motoyasu almost chuckled, but honestly, he could only pity the man.

His face is just menacing, the presence he gave away was more befitting a villain rather than a hero. It was no surprise the people didn't want to join him.

"What's wrong with the shield?" King watched his tool.

He tried to take it off last night, but he couldn't even budge it. It was utterly fused with his arm. _"How will I clean under it!? My arm will go moldy!" _That, or it will start to have an awful stench. He got his limb broken before when he was younger; he knows well how bad it'd smell after the plaster cast was removed.

"The shield… well, dude. We spoke about this last night. It is the job of the losing team." all behind Motoyasu nodded.

"And as I said, You played a badly designed game then." Yeah, that must've been a really badly made game. Every class in every game is made to be balanced. The developers are not stupid enough to program classes no one uses or is useless in the endgame.

It was just a waste of resources and time. Things developers usually lacked due to the greediness of their management team.

_"Did I say something wrong?" _The people just glared at him, like he said something profane. _"I just want to go home."_

"Well, Mr. King is right, perhaps. His explanations and reasons last night were compelling. Still, the game I played worked the same as Motoyasu explained. Considering how much this world resembles that, I ought to agree with him. It is not likely you can progress with that weapon."

King can only deadpan; still finding their reason stupid.

If they can't use the shield, that was most likely the most awfully designed game in existence, or everyone in that game had never read the guide to learn how to use it properly. Or, as the third option, was utterly unable to play classes that need some kind of thinking or skill. Either way, it was not his problem now; he will figure something out later.

_"Yeah, most likely that's the case…"_

"You can have my team; I'd rather go alone…" Ren offered with a huff, looking immensely annoyed by the people behind him. "Those who can't keep up with me, just leave my party."

"L-Lord Ren?!" A few of his followers whimpered behind him, looking horrified, shrinking behind the guy's back like scared children.

Yeah, that Ren guy looked like a loner, with a sword in hand, he most likely would be fine alone. Yet, King was somewhat suspicious; those people will probably not leave a handsome guy to someone as menacing-looking as him.

Looking around, King saw the grimace, disgust, and shudder all the adventurers offered him, all the uncaring stares of the nobles.

_"They're scary!"_

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

The King engine started on its own.

"He wants to attack us!?"

"S-So scary!" Several weapons were raised against him, the guards readied themselves to go against this menacing, and probably dangerous man.

"Shield, please, moderate yourself in my throne room. These people are not your enemies." The king sweated, the immense pressure the Shield Hero emitted was almost suffocating.

"I want no enmity between us…" King somehow managed to calm himself; his heart rate slowed, making the King Engine emit a lower volume. "But I wonder why no one wants to join."

"Hrnmm… Apparently, a rumor has been circulating around the castle that out of all the Heroes, the Shield Hero is the least acquired with the ways of our world."

"That's it?" It was a really lame excuse if you asked King.

"Indeed, in the legends, it is written that the Heroes are ones with a deep understanding of the inner workings of this world. If I am not mistaken, that does not apply to you?"

"True…" yeah, King never played those games the other three mentioned. "_Most likely because they do not even exist in my world!?"_

"Hmm, I see…" King sighed; it was like every single one of these people were joining hands against him. It was not fair. But what did he expect? The world was not a fair place. Among everyone in this room, he knew all too well.

"In that case, I go alone."

The adventurers around Ren sighed, relieved. They didn't have to accompany the shield demon.

"I would rather not want to force anyone to come with me…" Yeah, thinking about the dagger-like glares and constant complaining voices he would have to listen to if someone would be forced to accompany him, he would rather go alone — even if it was very unlikely he can survive even the first day.

Seriously! He didn't even know the outlines of the place! Where should he go? What should he do first?

_"In that case… I have to follow the guide this system offers and proceed with the exploration myself." _He read the help-page thoroughly before falling asleep — and during meal-times — he knows about a thing or two already.

"Are there any willing to go to the Shield Hero's side?" The king asked. His face was quite bored, like he didn't care at all.

_"Or maybe it's because his face is like that?" _He couldn't blame Aultcray, King's face also offered an unnerving picture, anyone he meets looks kinda afraid. _"Also, he's quite oblivious, even forgetting that I was here during the introductions."_

Though, King considered Aultcray utterly forgetful — out of his "pure" heart — the expression of Aultcray hinted an entirely different reason to anyone who knew him. It was his contempt-filled face.

"…"

Silence descended on the throne room for a long time, as no one volunteered.

King stood alone. Around him were many people. Yet, he was utterly alone.

"No one?" Aultcray raised his brow. "In that case…"

"My Lord, I will travel with the Shield Hero!"

"Huh?" King didn't expect anyone, but behind Motoyasu, a beautiful girl stepped forward.

She was a lovely young woman with shoulder-length red hair. She was stunning; compared to her, the rest of the room was quite bland. Her features were slightly childish, if King had to say anything about her.

"Ah! I see! Very well!" The king welcomed the decision with a regal movement of his arm. "Are there any other willing to go on the Shield Hero's side?"

Not a single person showed even the slightest inclination to volunteer. Finally, the king sighed, carrying some tone of regret.

"Very well. In that case, Shield Hero, now you are on your own to scout out and recruit suitable companions. Because of these… unique circumstances of yours, I will make a special exemption, just this once, and increase your aid for the month over that of the other Heroes."

"Thank you…" King nodded solemnly.

A little bit of extra cash never hurts. Though, it was a little bit strange. King understood Aultcray wanted to help him out, but wouldn't it more beneficial giving the others an increased amount instead of him? They had more companions, meaning they most likely would have more expenses with buying all their gear and maintaining them, as well as feeding themselves.

_"But as I see now, they already have some semblance of equipment…"_ Still, the bigger team didn't necessarily mean they would earn more. People needed to find a balance between team size and the amount their team could effectively can earn from an area. One didn't need an army to farm at the starting area! Just four was enough. Hell, four was the perfect number for any party size! It grinds King's gears that he couldn't party with the other heroes. It was utterly inane and stupid.

If the amount they earned didn't balance their expenses, their team would go bankrupt easily.

_"Those armors and equipment... They surely have a hefty amount of maintenance cost."_

In that case, it was more beneficial going with a smaller party of two or three than getting a whole army behind your back. This was more considerable in the starting area, where monsters were usually weaker, but dropped items were worth a notch, and newbie players had basically zero coins to start with.

_"In RPGs, you need to maintain your team, paying for everything yourself." _King was not as naïve as he seemed to be. He suspected that those adventurers weren't joining out of the pureness of their heart; they also had expenses, expenses they were not likely able to pay, so they'd ask the person they joined to pay them some sum of upkeep.

"Let's distribute the funds!"

Reacting to the king's signal, four ladies stepped forward, presenting heavy, jangling purses. As expected, King's was slightly heavier than the rest.

"I hereby bequeath 800 silver coins to the Shield Hero… King." Aultcray almost spat.

The man calling himself that way? What did the Shield Devil think of himself?! "… and 600 silver coins to the other Heroes. Use this money to equip yourselves, then begin your journey!"

"Yes!" Came the same answer from the three. King however just remained silent. This simply made him all the more intimidating.

_"Well, King… what have you gotten yourself into?" _He asked himself, but of course, the Strongest Man on Earth received no answer. He never got a response. More so, if there was a god out there, then that god most likely hated him by putting him in such a situation, or simply loved watching him suffer.

_"Why me? What did I do to deserve this?!"_

And thus, when the king finished distributing the funds, the people slowly went out of the great hall, then the introductions started.

"Shield Hero, it is nice to meet you. My name is Myne Sophia. Let's do our best together, okay?"

"Mm…" King hummed, offering a smile. "Let's do our best." Although that small smile of his mostly came from uneasiness than any real form of joy.

If it came to a real fight, he feared that this young, hopeful looking little girl will have a rude awakening. He had utterly no skills or knowledge of how battles in real life worked. In games, he was unbeatable. But in real life, he was weaker than an average man!

_"Still, I should be glad that at least one person wants to come with me. Still…"_

The girl looked enthusiastic. Too enthusiastic, even. She was all smiles. Not as though he wanted to complain, as it was a miracle in itself that someone even joined him. Still, King would've be glad if someone less bubbly and cheery would join him.

_"Let's hope that she will not become like 'those kinds' of my fans." _Even remembering those stalkers, King couldn't help but tremble.

From time to time, those types of 'fans' would appear, and he could barely escape them. Those people following him everywhere. Because of them and the continually appearing challengers, he couldn't even leave his home without a disguise.

"I-Is something wrong? Shield Hero?" Myne seemed to be caught off guard for a moment, offering a momentary scared expression as King blanked out while observing her, and although he didn't intend to be menacing, his usual stoic, 'battle-hardened' expression was enough to scare the girl.

"It is nothing. Let's proceed. Do you know of any armor or weapon shops? Perhaps a place where we can get supplies for our adventure?"

Yes, if he even wanted to start this adventure, he needs gear. Shield bearers in-game usually wear heavy armor to protect themselves better and to serve as a moving fortress for their friends. Heavier weight also helps them to tackle enemies and usually, gives them greater weight and penetrating force to their charges.

_"However, I have no training for wearing any heavy armor, and my stamina and endurance would also most likely will let me down." _He already imagined himself with his back-breaking while trying to raise himself in his armor — basically, the weight of his own armor crushing him.

_"Just like when I tried to pull out Atomic Samurai's sword."_ Just like back then, he had no faith in his strength at all.

"Hmm, I may know a few. Follow me!" After a short thought, the girl quipped happily, leading the way.

_"I also need some stomach medicine…" _King grabbed his stomach subtly. He was starting to feel nauseous from all the things that happened in the last few days. All the things he'd need to consider in order to just remain alive… It was bothersome!

_"Being a hero is a letdown…"_

And thus, the duo started their way, the girl leading the Hero of Heroes.

…

Even though he had caught a curious glimpse of it yesterday, seeing the city up close made him realize the vivid charm of this parallel world.

The streets were paved with stones, and there were signs hanging on the buildings. The place was shrouded with the savory fragrance of food. It was different compared to the towering buildings and shopping complexes of City-M, or rather- any part of his original world.

_"The best comparison would be an RPG world with fantasy settings." _The ordinary townsfolk, of course, stared at the duo without pause, as if they were circus attractions.

_"Most likely my strange clothes…?"_ That, or his face. Or his shield. To be honest, he had no idea why the townsfolk they passed by continued to stare at him, but it freaked him out.

_"Calm down, if you don't do anything stupid, they'll just leave you alone."_

After 10 minutes of walking from the castle, Myne stopped in front of a conspicuous store with an over-sized sword printed on its sign.

"Here is my recommendation."

"I see." King just mumbled, stepping through the door. At first glance, one could see weapons hanging from the walls, exactly as one would imagine when mentioning a Weapon Shop.

There were also other necessities for adventuring, such as completed suits of armor together with matching weapons.

"Welcome!" The moment the two of them entered the shop, the owner cheerfully greeted them. He was just like King anticipated, someone ultra-buff who stood behind the weapon store counter.

_"It would have been rather disappointing if the owner looked otherwise." _Of course, since he read somewhere that metalworking required great stamina and endurance. But there was also a possibility that the shop run by a more trade aligned figure — which was possibly fat, or scrawny — and the buff guy was working in the workshop, making weapons. Honestly, King could only guess how things worked here.

"Hmm…" As he looked around, King wondered which side weapon he could use.

_"Anything too heavy, or ones that need skill to handle are out of the question! Swords or simple bludgeoning weapons would do…" _He was aware that according to his stats, his attack power was pitifully low — basically almost zero — still, carrying a weapon was better than only going with shield and battering the enemy to death. _"I also need to consider what kind of armor I should use. Chain-mail as a starter should do."_

In survival games where the weight of armor and weapons were also a factor, chain-mail was somewhat balanced, providing adequate protection and was a lot lighter than full plate. Maintaining it was also cheaper, and it protected more than leather armor.

"Hmm…" King glanced at one of the mannequins, wearing a full-body chain-mail. "How much does your chain-mail cost?"

"You are new here, aren't you? I've never even seen you before in town! Yet, you already know what you are looking for? I like that!" the bald man smirked.

"I was introduced to this shop by her."

King subtly glanced at Myne. She raised her hand and waved back lightly, almost like she was waving away the compliment.

"Ah! It is no problem~! It's simply that Erhard's shop is famous around here."

"Oh ma'am, you're flattering me. But isn't the outfit of your father over there a bit weird? Where are you from, good sire?"

Great, now he was mistaken for her father. He was just, 29 dammit! Yet, people could even mistake him is her father? This day couldn't get any worse.

_"But perhaps my appearance is to blame…" _Yeah, many people did often say that he looked older than he really was.

"I am not her father. She is my…"

"Traveling companion!" The girl quipped once again, hugging his arm tightly, pushing it between her cleavages.

"Oh! I see!" the man blinked, recognizing the strange shield on his arm, smiling impishly.

"So that means you're a Hero!? Wow!"

Erhard took a long, hard look at King.

"Indeed, your posture is quite good, befitting a hardened warrior." Erhard caressed his chin, measuring King. "And that stare? It speaks about great experience. Maybe training?" King didn't show any outward reaction upon hearing this; since his facial muscles were so flabbergasted he couldn't even raise a brow.

_"What experience? What training? Hardened warrior!? What nonsense is this guy spouting about!?" _He wanted to refute all these claims but was too slow in his endeavor.

"Oh! Lord Shield Hero really is experienced!?~" Myne glittered, watching the man in a different light. Though unknown to King, some malice-filled-fear was also present in her tone.

"I encountered a few monsters before…" And at the time, he was completely unable to move or run away immediately. Right! He had experience and bad luck with bad encounters. What of it!? He was just really unlucky!

"I see, just as I suspected." grinned Erhard. "But your face…"

"What's wrong with my face?" It was always his face! What the hell were people's deal with his face? He knew damn well he wasn't a pretty boy — definitely not a Sweet Mask — still, he was not the monster everyone tried to depict him as. He had no idea what the deal was with them! Had they never heard of the phrase 'don't judge a book by it's cover'?

"If you allow me to say this, it is rather menacing. Not as I would imagine a hero would look like…"

_"Give me a break…"_

"... yet, heroes without scars are rarely useful." The man concluded with a laugh in the end. "You look just like the rumors described you. Well, it doesn't matter! Until you pay, you can be the devil himself. I don't care. How can I serve you? Want new equipment? I assure you, my shop offers the best wares around."

"I suppose... you can show us around."

"Right, but before that. How much is your maximum budget? I just want to know so that I can show you some adequately priced equipment."

"Hmm…" It was true. One can't spend too much on equipment as a game guide said. But spending all in one place? Moreover, in the starter town? Rookie mistake. Starter armors and weapons were usually replaced not long after the first drop from a monster.

Unfortunately, The Strongest Hero had no idea how much the allowance the king gave him was worth; he needed to rely on his only source of information, Myne.

"Myne, how much should we spend? I am not yet aware of the worth of your world's currency."

"Oh! Let me handle it, my hero!" She measured King, appraising his worth. "Hmm… Around 250-300 would be enough."

"Hmm, very well, make it 275 at maximum." That was a good middle ground. They also needed to consider that they would not have any income for a whole month. If that was the case, their funds would drain away quite fast. King didn't want to starve nor live in the streets. His frail body was utterly unfit to spend his nights on the road!

"Very well." Erhard left, picking up a few weapons and armors.

As the man placed the weapons on the counter, King immediately started to inspect the one-handed swords which looked light enough for him to handle.

_"They look quite well made. I expected worse in the starter town." _Alas, such was his experience with games. In starter towns, weapons and armors offered by the traders were usually crappy. One could find better if they'd have gone out naked, and beat a few monsters. Wasting money on it was simply idiotic.

_"But it seems that this world is different from the games I played." _The system his shield offered referred to it as a game, yet, everything else was too real to be considered as one. The starter town didn't sell shitty weapons, monsters didn't drop weapons and armor but instead dropped materials which could be used to make new weapons and armor, etc.

"These are my newest recommendations since they all have a blood-clean coating."

"Some kind of enchantment?" He guessed.

Since it was a fantasy setting, it was sensible to give a fancy name to the special effects.

"More like a coating, magical enchantments come at a high price. With this, the weapon hardly goes dull due to gore."

"Handy…" King glanced at the closest sword.

There were games which had a degradation system. Of course, most were not sophisticated, and the weapons damaged the same whatever you did with them, no matter the type of the enemy you attacked.

For example, your weapon and armor degraded the same rate no matter if you attacked an acidic being such as a slime, or a simple skeleton. The durability didn't change whether one attacked a slime or an iron golem. Very few kinds of games added multiple modifiers for this kind of degradation system.

"From the left, we have Iron, Magic Iron, Magic Steel, and finally Silver. Each of their performances are guaranteed to be top-notch. You would find better works anywhere else!"

"Hmm, I see. I assume the material used will affect its durability?"

These weapons seemed to belong in the ore based category. In other fantasy-setting games, King even saw weapons made from purely crystal, some hard stone, or even purely energy fueled by a magic source; he couldn't be sure that they didn't exist here.

"Indeed, it's as you say. The material affects how much the weapon and armor can bear. There are better weapons around here, but these are the ones that fit your budget of 275 Silver Coins."

This world once again resembled a typical RPG game. Usually, bigger countries had better stocks of weapons than small cities or rural villages; this seemed to be the case for this parallel world too.

_"Sigh... No other choice but to try them out… what a bother." _King reached towards a sword that looked among the lightest, grabbing it.

_"It's... quite heavy. Is this how a real sword feels like?" _Of course, Atomic Samurai's Katana was far heavier, and the blade had different feel, and it was a lot better made.

_"But even so, compared to this shield, it's quite cumbersome."_ Though, maybe it was because he already got used to this shield on his arm after a day, and that's why he felt that way, but honestly, he had no idea. King was never the bodybuilder nor strength type, having absolutely no physical prowess.

Trying to swing it, King wanted to test the heft and feel of the blade and-

**'Chang!'**

"Augh!" in the next moment, it was like a sudden electric impulse ran through his hand, sending the sword flying.

"Aiiieeeeei!" Myne behind him yelped, the sword almost beheading her. In fact, it managed to shave off some of her hair — making her hairdo look quite asymmetrical and funky.

"Ca-Can't you see where you throw that thing!?" she whimpered, utterly scared.

"Ah, sorry." King can only scratch the back of his head sheepishly. "Some electrical impulse ran through my hand when I tried to swing it. The weapon simply flew out of my hand."

"Is that so…!?" Myne's eyes twitched, almost like she wanted to shout.

In the next moment, King recognized the text in his view.

"Huh?"

**[Violation of the Legendary Weapons Convention: you had touched another specialized weapon with the intent of possession.]**

_"What the heck!? I remember I read something similar in the help section."_

Quickly searching through the help, he found the exact reason behind this strange happening.

**[Excluding their own Legendary Weapon, the Hero cannot equip any other weapon for combat purposes.]**

_"This is bad… very bad!" _he suspected it meant something like this, but hoped it had a different meaning behind it.

For example, he can't equip two-handed weapons or staves. Who thought a simple sidearm would have such an effect!?

_"In games with shield, one can automatically equip a one-handed side weapon. Who thought it would be different here?" _Hell, he even played games where the character with adequate strength can equip and use two-handed weapons in one arm.

_"Damn! It seems I can't equip any side weapons..."_ He concluded. The only way he would be able to attack was to bash the enemy to death with his shield.

_"MY ARM WILL BREAK!" _Yep, there was no way in hell he could continuously bash and not break his arm in the process.

"I see…How does it function, I wonder? Can I take a look?"

"Of course."

It was evident Erhard had taken an interest in that shield, recovering a monocle and chanting something, his eyes widened.

"Amazing!" his eyes widened, inspecting the shield. "Even though it looks like a Small Shield, there's something mysterious about it..."

"Maybe the legendary modifier?" Yes, the status window also said it was a legendary weapon. It was not surprising that it was a lot higher-grade than simple items — also, in games, legendary weapons always had some special effect, or gained skill — it was not surprising.

"Possibly. Either way, probably this jewel engraved in the middle contains great power. I can sense a strong source of power from there. While I could somewhat identify it through my Appraisal magic, I couldn't fully grasp it. It seems to be a type of curse. "

_"Great… now I am also cursed."_ Just what he needed.

After finishing his appraisal, Erhard measured King while playing with his trademark beard.

"You've shown me something interesting. Then do you want to buy some armor instead?"

"That would be good." If he had to go out there and risk his life fighting monsters with nothing more than his shield and fist, the least he wanted was some adequate protection.

"Since you're buying armor instead of weapons within the 275 silver coin range; then I guess this armor will do."

Since he already possessed a shield, it didn't seem like he had many other options.

Erhard brought back several pieces of armor that were on display.

"As you may assume, full plate armor isn't very popular with adventurers since it's quite chunky, so chain-mail would provide better mobility while offering considerable protection."

It also looked easier to equip than bothering with a full plate with it's dozens of belts and clips, almost like he was just wearing a shirt.

The chain-mail looked fine enough, though. Looking at it, the game-like system immediately displayed the stat change.

**[Chain-mail Defense Power Up! Tolerance against the enemy's slash attack (small) increased!]**

Well, at least he could raise his defense. His attack stats were still pathetic, but that was expected from a Shield-User class.

_"Hopefully, I will not die from the first attack." _And that his armor was still mobile enough for him to run away if the need called for it.

_"I remember an anime where one of the characters had similar tactics, running away if the enemy was too powerful." _It was a sensible thing to do while facing an opponent way above oneself. Not like the annoying main character that just stood their ground and depended on plot armor to save the day.

If it came to stalling the enemy and risking one's life, King just couldn't understand how other heroes could do it. He was too cowardly even to wait for the first strike to connect. He'd run way before then!

_"Maybe it's just me being a coward."_ That, or the other heroes were simply monsters, and he was just a simple person dropped into the world of monsters. Both were a possibility.

"How much is this worth?"

"120 silver in discount."

"I see… Myne? What do you think?" Shakily, the girl answered. "It sounds reasonable. How much exactly can we resell it?"

"It is relatively new, so, 100 silver, I might say."

"That's…" It was really generous. In games, King also sold unused equipment below his current level. Compared to 120 silvers, the 100 silver reselling rate was more than generous. VERY generous.

_"The most I used to get in games was 15-20% of the original price." _And of course, the trader sold it back at full price — or higher — if one accidentally sold the equipment from their inventory, they needed to pay a steep price to get it back.

_"Those greedy bastards!"_

Also, according to his stat chart, he was only level 1; it was sensible that he'd need to upgrade his equipment as he gets a higher level.

"In that case, it is a deal." Yes, unlike games, this world operated on much fairer principles. _"Or the developers simply got it all wrong and used wrong variables everywhere."_

"Splendid!" the smith grinned, hitting his palm. "I will be sure to give you a bonus next time. Do you want to try it now?"

"Sure…"

"Then, please come this way."

King was led to the changing room and donned the Chain Mail over his undergarments, his old clothes put inside the bag he carried around.

"Well, well! You look even more menacing now."

"Well, thanks, I suppose." It fit him quite well, even he was surprised. Yet, the compliment was entirely unneeded; it just weighed him down.

_"Of course, it's just starter gear. It looks like that…" _Watching himself in the mirror, his Otaku mind went overdrive, imagining himself in full plate and cool legendary armor. Yet, as he considered his own frail reality, the world pulled his mind back from wonderland.

He wanted to wear legendary armor, sure! With a cool look on top of that! But even he was aware, he most likely neither had the stats, nor the stamina yet to wear full plate armor and look cool. For a time, this armor will suffice. Perhaps when he leveled enough. But that would be very far away.

…

Not long after, King and Myne left the shop. The girl already had some gear on her; there was no need for an upgrade yet. Maybe later, they will replace her armor and weapon too for a better one. But for now, they will have to suffice.

_"Although her hair looks quite funny. Did she get a new haircut while I was in the changing room?" _King had no idea if it was that way before starting their journey, he was never a man who gave much heed of other's scalps. Still, it somehow looked different than he initially remembered. He usually wouldn't care, but he was sure that wasn't the same haircut.

Either way, on their way out of town, many people continued staring at them why they passed by, some even muffling their chuckles.

And thus, soon, the two left the town, reaching an expansive green meadows spreading far beyond the horizon.

"Well, let's start at…" King looked around. Maybe outwardly it didn't show, but he was unsure how to start this adventure.

In truth, he had never been in a real adventure before.

_"In games, usually the starting quest always guides the players to the next node, where they automatically receive the next quest. Then the next. Then the next…"_

Unfortunately, despite the game-like system that seemingly now was part of him, there was no indication if there was any quest around.

_"What to do?"_ He asked himself since all this ordeal started. No answer came, of course.

"Hmm, should we start to farm?" He pondered. In his status screen, his level was displayed, which meant he could level up and gain further stats, become stronger as they continued leveling. If he was careful, he might even be able to get strong enough to the point he could actually be a hero!

...Yeah, right.

_"If there is no quest displayed, they are either hidden, or we need to suffice from purely farming."_

He really hoped there were at least hidden quests around, only leveling by farming was painful. He knew from experience. Unless the fields had a 500% increase in mob spawns, he honestly doubted that he could properly farm well.

"Farm?" Myne blinked, confused by the unknown term King used.

"Killing monsters. Herding them and defeating them for EXP. We'll be leveling up that way." King explained the game term.

"That's a good idea, Shield Hero!" Myne quipped, smiling as always. _"Just as expected!"_

_"Her smile makes me sick…" _He hated people who smiled all the time, they always wanted something from him. Their bubbliness was just poisonous!

"So, where do we start?"

Wandering about for a few minutes, a nasty-looking orange balloon-like creature jumped up before King.

"Woah!" He jumped back due to the sudden appearance of the small thing. It didn't look dangerous in any way; it was an orange balloon after all. Still, appearing so sudden, and right away biting his arm, it was unexpected.

"Wha…?"

"Right! Shield Hero! Attack!" Myne cheered.

"Ora!" King used his fist to strike it, and the creature was sent far away. Surprisingly, it was elastic, almost like he hit a ball instead of a creature.

"Di-did I manage to hit it?" Yeah! He hit something! He managed to attack it!

Never before had he properly fought monsters and defeated them! Not once did he ever gather his courage to even stand against them!

Yet, his victory was only momentary, as the creature bounced back from the ground, biting on his fist.

"Huh?" Raising his fist, the small being gnawed on it angrily, glaring daggers at him.

'Gnaw! Gnaw! Gnaw! Gnaw!'

"Aghhhhh!" he was terrified, being attacked by a monster, how should he act otherwise?

Living in a dangerous world filled with monsters, King learned early on, do not judge monsters according to their appearance. Even the most innocent looking creature can destroy whole cities.

_"Just look at Tornado of Terror or Child Emperor. Who the Hell would think that those two are among our top heroes!?"_

Yeah, even hearing the accomplishments of those two filled King with dread. There is no way he wants to face such monsters.

Gnawing on his fist? Attacked? What should he do? King did the only sensible thing! Run — screaming in terror!

"AGHHHHHHH!"

"Shield Hero?" Myne blinked, seeing King as he is desperately trying to get rid of the small monster...

By running left and right.

"HEEEEEEEEEELLLLLP!" Of course, his shout raised the attention and ire the nearby balloon monsters. It seems as though his voice was extra annoying to them, almost like someone used an [Area Taunt] skill with an extra-long range effect.

Thus, they started to flock, flock, and flock! All of them were heading towards the duo. Even from the nearby forest, and even the entire region, the balloon monsters began to gather behind him.

"Ehhh!?"

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'** the King Engine roared as King's terror grew, it was like a signal horn for them, making every balloon from the nearby area flock towards them.

"Ah… Ahhhh!" Myne raised her sword, horrified. Suddenly seeing the horde of monsters charging after King, and even though she managed to cut a few, yet, it was not enough to repel them! Nearly not enough to resist a whole army that suddenly appeared!

"Shi-Shield Hero! He-Help!" The monsters gnawed on her, sparing not even her precious assets.

"Aghhh! Leave me alone!" Yet, Myne seemed to be a tiresome prey, after gnawing on her a little — leaving her slightly naked — the monsters decided to change victim, charging after King who was noisier, and tastier looking food.

"Should we help them?"

"Nah! I think he can manage. Anyway, he looks scary."

"Surely it is some tactic of his."

"Ah! I see he is herding the monsters together with that scream. Very smart indeed."

"You think so?"

"Yes." Meanwhile, on the nearby hill, the other heroes and their team watched as King ran around like a maniac, screaming. For them, he looked like a person who knew what he is doing. Using an elaborate tactic to gather, then finish the collected monsters with as little effort as possible.

He looked like a menacing person. Also, they were curious about what this always calm-and-collected man was capable of. He said that he was a hero in the profession. Well, He could show how strong he truly was now!

"Oraaaaaa!" and King did what he did best. Run! Run! Run and RUN! Every fiber of his being was focused on evading his pursuers.

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

The King engine intensified with each moment, basically roaring to the world, thumping in 'rage' and 'bloodlust'!

Though he was only running in circles, he was lucky, his constant need to escape from monsters brought the needed and surprisingly enduring stamina, he easily outran the creatures chasing after him. For the other heroes, to be able to keep up for so long, his speed was astonishing, remarkable even!

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" This chase continued for a few more minutes, as the other heroes grew bored went back to farm for their own EXP. Though, they should had done better to watch out, because in the next moment-

"What is this sound?" Motoyasu and his companions were the first ones who raised their heads, killing monsters just nearby. As they turned towards the direction of the sound-

There was a literal tidal wave of those orange ball-things chasing after King's figure!

"This is…?" One of Motoyasu's companions backed off in horror. "So many!?"

"We need to retreat! We can't possibly…"

"Ha! Great! He is bringing the horde to us! Do not disappoint him!" The blond playboy smirked. "Let's take care of it. After all, it is a hero's task to help out his fellow hero." boasted the college student.

"Lord Motoyasu, I don't think it is a good idea, their numbers…"

"Don't speak nonsense; they are simple balls. What can they…"

"GIVE ME WAY! RUN AWAY!" King warned them, but it was too late.

"Huh?" In the next moment, like a flash, King raced away, leaving the flabbergasted Motoyasu and his group standing.

"Guahhh!" As in the next moment, the wave of monsters washed over them, their sheer number pummeling them to the ground, washing them over in a vicious stream of gnawing balls.

"Guh…" Motoyasu and his companions were out, they were no longer in a state to continue today.

"That guy…" The next one was Itsuki, who recognized the rumbling sounds, his eyes squinted for a moment, just to acknowledge the endless tide of balls bouncing after King.

"The fool!"

"Impossible! How there are so many!?"

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!**!' In all directions, the King Engine was drawing the monsters, resonating in a frequency that made the man an enticing target, enraging the balls of death. Behind him, the number of monsters were ever-growing, becoming an endless tide of destruction.

"GIVE ME WAY! RUN AWAY! SAVE YOURSELF!" He warned them, but once more, it was too late! It was always too late…

"Impossible! This many!?" Itsuki fired his bow relentlessly, yet, there were too many. As King ran past them, their group too, was overwhelmed by the endless tide, leaving them damaged and unconscious.

"Guh!"

Itsuki and his group were out. Two from the four teams were eliminated.

"Lord Ren! What should we do!?"

Ren squinted his eyes, considering what to do.

These little things were the weakest monsters, yet, their overwhelming numbers and momentum were enough to leave two of the four heroes, and their group barely alive. Luckily, neither of them died. Still, the damage was great.

"We retreat!"

"L-Lord Ren?"

"Retreat, now!" Ren commanded, and his companions nodded. They saw firsthand what happened with the other two heroes.

_"That fool! Just what did he do to draw so many monsters!?" _It was utterly flabbergasting, there shouldn't be enough monsters to create such a massive tide of monsters! The only sensible explanation was that they came from the nearby forest. Yes, that had to be the case.

Yet, it was still astounding how he could draw so many at once! Was it the secret ability of the shield?

"We retreat, we'll watch the development from nearby."

"Yes!" Thus, the hero of the sword and his companions retreated to a safe distance, being the only group left — save for King himself — left unharmed from the tidal wave of monsters.

In the end, the balloons managed to corner King near a tree, all awaiting to gnaw a piece from him.

"What to do? What to do? What to do?" King trembled, his heart beating at it's full rhythm, pumping his blood with insane speed. Any normal person's heart would have blown up from the strain. Yet, King had an extraordinary heart! It was extra sturdy. Any old triad leader would gladly replace his own with his!

_"I'm gonna die here!? But I barely started!"_

It was over! He was going to die here! It was shameful, but it seems that he'll die in the starting zone. But what did he expect? He was never the lucky one…

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

The King engine usually discouraged and forced his enemies into unconditional surrender, even the most vicious monsters weren't an exception!

Unfortunately, these things were purely instinctual beings; they cared not about being hurt. They know not the infamy of King among the members of the Monster Association and literally anything alive. They only know that right now, before them, a scared human stood, offering himself for consumption.

"Guahhhh!"

All balloons jumped at him at once; King had no other choice! He really didn't want to do this! HE WANTED TO GO HOME!

"Dammiiiiiiiiit!"

Punching forward, the first balloon directly biting into the one still gnawing on his fist.

It was strange that he felt no pain at all, but at the time, he thought it was only because of the sudden adrenaline surge. Never did he consider it was because of his high defensive value.

...No, he might have considered it. He was just too scared to care. He just wanted to survive!

'Gnaw!' as the first balloon gnawed on its own companion for a few moments, it popped, exploding!

'Pop!'

The balloon on his fist burst, destroyed and remained as orange scraps.

"Huh?"

[+1XP.] The notification appeared in his field of view right away.

The shockwave that came with the burst sent away the attacking monster, which collided with its comrades behind it, sending a bouncing wave through the wall of monsters and destabilizing the tide completely, causing utter chaos!

At this moment, the overwhelming numerical superiority was purely disadvantageous, turning against the army itself.

Like a calculated bowling ball hitting bowling pins, the destabilized tide scattered, bouncing all over the place, colliding again and again with each other and the environment!

Like balls, their bounciness turned against them. There was no stopping! Once the chain reaction started, nothing could stop it anymore!

Thanks to the sheer number of gathered balls, everything collided and bounced back from anything and everything, an unstoppable chain reaction ever-growing in intensity and speed began to form.

"S-So many!" King couldn't move due to his fright rooting him in place, so he just gulped and closed his eyes, hoping that he will survive this. The only thing he could do was pray that Saitama would just pop up and save him!

Around him, the chaos grew ever more! The ricocheting balls, again and again, collided against each other, rebounding, gaining uncontrollable speed and momentum! Some of them popped from the strain, releasing another shockwave that made things worse, accelerating the process!

Again and again, this near-impossible to event happened! Bouncing against the environment and each other, ever-growing in speed and intensity.

Any normal person hit by these uncontrollable balls would be seriously injured or even die on the spot. Their speed left dents on the ground, shattered rocks and knocked down sturdy trees. Slowly, the creatures became living bouncing bullets, unable to stop or even slow themselves.

The intense sound even drew monsters further away from the nearby region, and soon, all the nearby monsters flocked to King location, just to find death! Even the biggest monsters rose to the challenge, yet weren't spared! All died instantly, for he was King! The Strongest Man On Earth! No one could touch him!

With each moment, even greater strain grew and grew upon the unstoppable tide. Some colliding too hardly and the sheer force causing them to burst. Some meet their fate with a sharp edge of a stone or a broken branch. Some simply couldn't bear it anymore and simply died, killing further monsters drawn by the noise.

The poor creatures showed a desperate expression; they couldn't stop their body that became uncontrollable. Yet, before the 'calculated' strike of The Strongest Hero, only death awaited these monsters.

'Pop!'

"Huh?"

'Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!'

[+1XP.]

[+1XP.]

[+1XP.]

[+10 XP!]

'Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!'

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

...

...

Slowly, the tide started to shrink, only leaving a few miserable looking creatures behind, dying monsters barely able to drag themselves on the ground.

"Kyuuu!"

"This guy… this precision is inhuman!" Ren watched the "battle" wide-eyed from afar and was astonished.

This man… whoever he was, was a monster! With a single hit, he destroyed an entire horde of monsters! Even colossal beings fell, leaving only their mutilated carcass behind! Just how much power and precision did he have!?

He only struck once! Yet, in under a few minutes, it left mass destruction and mutilated corpses in its wake! It was incomprehensible! Flabbergasting! And above all… scary!

_"It should be impossible! Is he really just a Shield-User!? Just who are you, Mr. King!? Killing all of them with just one hit!?"_

"L-Lord-Ren. What do we do?"

"Tch! Let's check the others, King will solve this alone." He was honestly terrified by what he saw. Not only did this man manage to collect all the monsters around by just screaming, but he also managed to take care of them in a single hit! Not only that, he managed to kill monsters that were way out of their league! He was a monster himself!

_"Quiet ones are said to be the most dangerous, well, they weren't wrong this time." _With that, Ren left, embedding the sight of the dead monsters in his mind. He definitely wouldn't want to cross paths with this man.

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

King still trembled with his eyes closed, as around him, there were only a few balls alive, trembling before The Strongest Man.

"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!"

The remaining creatures were utterly terrified due to their already terrible state, thus they burst from the sheer stress that came with King's shout.

'Pop!'

[+1XP!]

[+1XP!]

[+1XP!]

[+1XP!]

[+1XP!]

[Congratulations! You reached level 29!]

"Huh?" King slowly opened his eyes, seeing all the drops and dead monsters around.

"Wha… where are all the monsters?" he was completely flabbergasted, a moment ago, a literal tidal wave of monsters pursued him, then the next, there were loud crashing sounds- and popping sounds.

"And what's with these corpses!?" He was confused, but mostly terrified when he saw all the monsters on the ground lying dead. Even monsters he had no idea where they came from were present! Colossal warthogs, lion-like beings, huge rats, etc… they were all dead, or twitching, bleeding out with a big hole on them, or a tree landed on them, knocking them over.

"Am I still alive? Is this a dream?" He checked by pinching himself. The sharp pain told him everything. "So this is real... but who saved me?" Honestly, he had no idea. He only remembered that he was chased around by these things, saw two heroes and ran past them. Aside from that, he was completely unaware of what happened. He was too scared to remember anything!

"I hope they are alright…" No, they're probably alive. At least, he hoped. Surely, they wouldn't just stay and bear with the onslaught of these things. That would be stupid, right?

"Huh?"

Removing a piece of scrap on his shoulder, it had a rubbery texture, and immediately after, his shield started to glow. He wanted to run away, but some inner voice told him to stay, as if telling him there was no more danger around.

"Hmm, I read something about this. According to the help section, the legendary weapons can be upgraded by monster parts." Well, he needed to try it, after all, he won't know for sure if he didn't try.

Slowly, he placed the scrap to the green jewel in the middle of his shield.

"Oh!"

[Orange Balloon Skin Absorbed!] As this line popped up, the Weapon Book Icon also blinked in King's vision. Opening it to confirm his suspicions, the Small Orange Shield Icon popped up.

While he couldn't transform his shield yet, he now knew what materials were required to unlock it.

"Hmm, I need more orange scrap to open up this skill." Thus, he feed more scraps to his shield, while feeding it with the parts of different monsters that were on the ground.

_"Whoever saved me, thank you!" _He then thanked the one whom saved his life, unbeknownst to him, that he was the one that saved himself.

Though he wasn't used to stealing loot from others, the one that killed them seemingly left after saving him, and as a gamer, leaving the loot here would be a waste.

"Great!" Soon, the [Balloon Series] and several more shields were unlocked, and honestly, he felt better.

[Balloon Series Unlocked, passive bludgeoning defense increased! Defense up!]

[Warthog Series Unlocked, passive charge speed, and thorn damage increased! Defense up!]

The list went on and on… in just one day, he already opened up several shields and passive effects.

"Ah! I read something about this!" Searching through the help section again, his eyes widened. "Oh! So they are passive skills. I can have them active even if I use a different shield!"

He knew what this meant! If passive effects could be stacked, that might be able to net him a pretty overpowered build. Still, in most games, passive effects were balanced, often disabled if one changed specs or weapons, yet, since he was stuck with his shield, maybe he could keep them.

"Yeah, that would be the best…" Sighing, he decided to collect a few more monster drops from around him, storing them in the inventory of his shield.

_"I assume I can sell these parts." _In games, monster parts often served as ingredients for different items, he hoped it would be the same here. _"At worst, I can just discard them later."_

His legendary weapon was pretty handy; not only could it continuously grow, but it could also serve as an inventory if needed. "Just like in-game…" As he thought of this, his smile suddenly disappeared.

In the middle of collecting a few monster parts for selling, he suddenly remembered his companion that he left behind.

"Oh! Shit! What happened to Myne!?" It just came to his mind! In his hurry, he left his companion behind, completely forgetting about her due to his stress and will to survive.

No matter how unsavory the girl's smile was, he couldn't just leave her behind! She might've gotten seriously injured.

"I hope that's not the case." He really hoped so. His poor heart couldn't take that strain. Taking care of himself was one thing, but if someone died because of him? Well, he preferred it if people remained alive.

_"Even if I am to always run away, I always apologize_."

"I need to get back to her!" And thus, King left the scene, searching for Myne, Not even paying attention to how devastated the area was around him.

…

"Hey, wake up! Are you alright?" Someone tugged her side, trying to wake her up.

"Guhhh!" Her body hurt, as if a stampeding monster trampled her over, chewed her up and spat her out.

"That damn bastard…" She groaned.

She underestimated him! That damned Shield Hero! Did he know her goal!? How was it possible!? No! Her acting was perfect! There was no way she was exposed!

She needs to go along with her plan! She needs to destroy the Shield Devil! Yes! Right! Her plan was perfect! There was no way she will fail! She can't doubt herself, or everything will fall apart! Her perfect scheme will be gone!

"Are you alright?" As she slowly opened her eyes, the man, the legend himself, King, came before her view. Completely unscathed, fine from all harm.

"Are you alright?" He asked again. "Should we look for a doctor?"

"Yo-you!?" She bit her lip, trying to suffocate her rage and disgust, she can't let her perfect façade fall. Or was it too late? It is possible that this man saw through all of it!? No! It can't be possible! She gave no sign of her betrayal!

"I-I am fine…" she sat up with a pained expression. "Just a few bruises. You? Those monsters must be really wearing you down."

"I am fine. I don't have any injures."

_"Wha-!? Impossible!? All those monsters followed him! There is no way he isn't hurt!?" _From that tide, even she had fainted! How come she wakes up and the man is completely fine!? It was completely impossible! Incomprehensible! Even the other three heroes combined shouldn't be able to fight off that absolute numerical superiority! Well, maybe when they level up more, but not now!

"I see. Still, you look injured. I think we should call it a day." The World's Strongest Shield Hero offered, inspecting her.

"Bu-But I still can...! Augh!" Myne grabbed her side, looking pained. It seems that she couldn't collect more information today. A part of her plan had already failed.

"Let's just return the town." Perfect. King was also tired. Despite his surprising amount of stamina, he was still tired after running so much the entire day. The sun was also setting soon. He spent all day running from these things, and searching where he came from. All around there were no more monsters present, all of them drawn by his 'King Engine' and destroyed by the "mysterious savior."

It was quite incredible, but he survived. _"I am either lucky or cursed…" _If he had to guess, it was the latter. He always found himself in the most uncomfortable and difficult situations.

_"I really need to thank the one who saved me. Without him, I would be dead." _maybe it was Saitama again? Then why didn't he stop to speak at least? It was all too strange and confusing; he wanted to go home. For a moment, he even spaced out, imagining himself playing with his games.

"Let's seek out a healer, or someone who sells potions." Right, it was a fantasy world. Surely, they have some HP potions around.

"Yeah, you're right." No matter her disgust, Myne couldn't help but agree. Those things really did a number on her; she needed medical attention. She felt like a corpse!

"Can you help me, please? My entire body hurts."

"Ah, of course." After a moment of hesitation, King helped her up, heading back to the town.

…

Walking through the city, the people once more watched the strange duo. Some were laughing at Myne's new hairstyle — which was still messed up after the sword gave her a haircut — some on the other hand just questioned her beaten-up state.

Something else attracted their attention soon after. Not far from the walls, out of nowhere, a lesser army of balloon monsters appeared, two of the four heroes were brought back, unconscious and injured. Their companions weren't faring any better.

Because of this, the full force of the town guards were alarmed, stationed near the walls. It was almost like the wave had come earlier, bringing calamity once more.

Yet, due to a strange reason, all the balloon monsters disappeared, gone! The scouts and hunters sent to investigate the case only found one thing!

A mountain of balloon-monster scraps and other monster carcasses covering a great area, part of the forest was utterly decimated! Trees and rocks lying left and right out of place, broken and shattered! Almost like a great storm or a stampeding monster rampaged through the area!

A gruesome scene, something blunt had pummeled every single monsters to death. Not sparing any or letting any escape!

Even the bigger monsters that were drawn from the depths of the forest died due to something hitting them with incredible force! It was an instant kill! Some of their heads were missing! Some bled out from blood loss!

Asking the sword hero was useless, the boy only shrugged, saying: "Ask the Shield Hero. That monster…" And with a slightly pale expression, he and his companions left, retreating for the day.

"Ah! Thanks for buying me some medicine. You really are caring, my hero." Myne was fine again after visiting a potion and herb shop; she looked like her old self — not her hair, though.

Myne and King took seats, waiting for their food to arrive.

_"30 copper coins per person for a night. Ten more for a meal. Ten Silver for the healing potion, stomach medicine, and a few herbs_…" King calculated, taking into account today's expenses.

Today was their first day, and he already spent more than one-eighth of his total monthly allowance. True, from the monster scraps, he could also receive a hefty coin selling them.

Still, being stingy, he usually strives to use his funds in games effectively, and spending for all of this was kind of painful for him. Hoarding enough gold to make dragons salivate was always number one priority! Who knows if he needed hundreds of thousands of gold coins for a never-before seen piece of ultra-powerful equipment?

_"Still, Myne showed me a lot of things today. I need to thank her somehow. Her armor is kinda ruined. Tomorrow, I'll buy her a new one." _She was his only companion; without her, he would be lost. That was the least he could do for her.

Spreading the map over the table, they started to discuss where to go tomorrow.

This girl was really determined to come with him. Even despite what happened and his offer to leave, she insisted on coming with him.

True, deep inside, he wanted her gone. He was still shameful of his display running away right after a monster swallowed his fist — even if it didn't hurt — he couldn't help but panic and run away.

_"But I suppose that's how any normal person should act, right? After all… A FREAKING MONSTER SWALLOWED MY HAND!"_

Watching the map, he saw the meadow where they 'hunted' today.

The map showed the geographic landscape of the surrounding region.

Planning was important, be it real life or games, going out for an adventure unprepared was tantamount to suicide.

Thus, he asked Myne to teach him about the area of this region. There was no way he wanted today's incident to repeat itself. It was embarrassing enough experiencing it once.

With this map, he could get a rough understanding of this country's geography.

There was a highway that cut across the castle meadows and lead into a forest. From there, mountains appeared along the edges of the map with a river nearby.

Since this wasn't a very big map, he couldn't see any other villages that might have been further ahead — or simply weren't marked due to the geographical nature of the map.

As expected, this map didn't provide any information beyond the forest; it would be suicidal to fight without knowing what monsters spawned there or the safest path through the area.

_"Even those balloons were scary! I don't really want to progress further!" _As he checked, his current level was 29.

_"The XP requirement to level up must be really, REALLY low." _He didn't kill a single monster at all, according to his memories. Did it come from exploration XP? Or was it feeding his shield that caused him to level up? He was not sure.

The only thing he was sure of was that he was way, WAY far from the level cap.

_"My stats grow though…" _Yet, with his nature as a coward — and with the mind of a gamer — he wouldn't just let his higher stats drive him to overconfidence. No! He needs to be more careful now than ever!

There were enemies that existed in games that could easily kill one despite the higher level. Especially those with stupid instant-kill abilities! Worse still, what if there were enemies that scaled with his level? He couldn't ignore this possibility!

After consuming their meal peacefully — some steak with a potato-like side — King was honestly full.

Myne raised her glass of wine, forcing a smile on her face. "Well then, I'll be retiring for today. Please take care of me tomorrow as well, my hero."

"Tomorrow." King only said that much, honestly hoping that things will go better.

Thus, the two retreated to their rooms.

"Man! My stomach is killing me!" As he returned to his room — slightly sleepy — he took his stomach medicine. All-day his stomach ached, it seems that the heavy meal and the wine just made it worse!

…

Later that night, while everyone slept, a shadow crept through the corridors of the upper floors. Awaiting her great scheme to come to fruition.

"Hmm, yes! He didn't close his door!" Myne grinned, she managed to open the door without even trying.

That monster should be sound asleep. She made sure to put a sleeping potion in his drink! Even an elephant would be knocked out by that much! She was sure; her plan came to fruition!

"That shield bastard will regret ever being born. I will make sure of it." searching in the room, she found the chainmail on the chair, a bump in the bed showing he is asleep. It is her chance! She needs to be fast, agile, and quiet; else, her cover will be blown.

_"It doesn't matter, though…" _she chuckled maliciously. For tomorrow, the Shield Hero will be disgraced.

"Where it is…?" As she started to search, a cold presence appeared behind her back, completely catching her off guard.

"What are you doing here?" Suddenly, she froze! A familiar voice coming from behind her.

"Im-Impossible!" She made sure he drank the wine! She put enough potion to knock an adult several times over! How is it possible he is still awake!?

"So it is that?" King raised his brow, making him look like he questioned her honesty. Appearing behind her, with his deep voice, it was like a monster stared at her back.

"Lo-Lord Shield Hero…!?"

That face! In the dark, it was even more terrifying! She trembled! She couldn't move! He just stared her down like he knew what she was planning! But that's impossible, right? She made sure not to betray her intentions.

_"Is he truly a monster?"_

"Myne, what are you doing in my room?" His words carried great weight, making her knees tremble.

"I-I assure you, it is not what you think…"

"Is that so…?"

That tone again! She can't bear it! Even without anything in her pocket, she needed to run for it! Escape!

_"Move! Move! Why can't I move!?"_

The pressure this man exerted was enormous! His mere stare made her whole body freeze and rooted to one place!

"What are you doing in my room?"

For King, it was an innocent question. Yet, seeing it from Myne's point of view, it was like a monster was towering above her. She couldn't move! She couldn't object! She was completely frozen.

"I-I just…" She can only shutter, there was no escape.

"Hmm, are you a sleepwalker?" King questioned, knowing a few people with such a condition. Though it didn't look like it, Tatsumaki apparently sleep-floats with ESP... however she manages to achieves that.

"Ye-Yes…!" She could only agree with his statement, unable to come up with anything else under her nervousness.

"In that case, let me return you to your room."

Thus, King escorted the paralyzed Myne to her room, closing the door behind her, as so she wouldn't wander out for the night.

In her room, the girl collapsed.

"A monster…" He cannot be described otherwise, he was a monster! "But how could it be? I gave him a sedative. I gave no sign of my intent. How? He should…" Then, realization dawned, making the girl thrash in rage! "That potion he bought!?"

Yes, it had to have been that!

To explain what happened, it was enough to know how different medicines affected each other. It is not an accident that doctors' advised against taking multiple different pills at once, as their impact could lessen, or even cancel each other out.

Let's take, for example, the sedative potion Myne poured into King's wine.

Mixed with the stomach medicine the man drank, the effects of the two were wholly extinguished. Moreover, since the man was drinking the thing since they left that shop, it served as a stimulant. It would be a miracle if he could sleep this night at all!

"He knows! He knows! I need to get away!" Quickly, she grabbed her luggage and equipment. Completely broken, she tried to open the door. "Why is it not opening!? Why isn't it-!" Once more, the realization dawned.

"No…" That night, Myne was the prisoner of her own overactive imagination! For everyone, King's stare had a great effect on others, whether they realized it or not.

"DAMMIIIT!"

* * *

**Scene Change: In the next morning**:

"Yawn!" King yawned loudly, waking up on the music of his alarm clock — the one on his mobile.

Something kept him up all night, only letting him sleep for a few hours. Due to that, he was extra drowsy and tired.

"Hmm, maybe it's the effect of stomach medicine? Or all that heavy food?" Once he returns to that potion shop, he will hand them a complaint. Those potions were probably just cheap goods, his stomach hurt all night. That medicine was not effective at all!

"Oh shit! It is already past eleven!" He had really overslept!

The sun shone brightly on his face as he opened the shutters as if announcing a new morning. Of course, it was already past eleven o'clock. But it didn't matter!

Disoriented from drowsiness and the sudden light, he got up and took a look outside the window.

It seemed that he had fallen asleep sometime after morning. The sun had already risen quite high.

Inspecting the street further, it was quite the spectacle seeing busy restaurants and food stalls cooking their ingredients for the day's lunch rush. There were also carriages being pulled along the street. King couldn't help but unwittingly fall into a trance of sorts.

It seemed that the bird or horse-drawn carriages were the two most popular types. The bird looked like a particular type of ostrich.

Thinking of it, King was hungry.

'Grrr!' Even his stomach signaled that it was past breakfast, and soon time for lunch.

"I am starving; I wonder if Myne-" His eyes widened immediately.

"Shit!? Is Myne still in her room?" He had planned to open her door around six o'clock, making sure that the girl didn't end up hurting herself while wandering half asleep during the night.

He had seriously overslept. Unfortunately, if his body couldn't get enough sleep, it forces itself to make up for it later. And thus, after being unable to fall asleep for a long period of time, his body decided to put him into the REM stage immediately.

"What the…"

In the next moment, his attention was on several soldiers entering the inn through the main entrance, quick metallic steps reverberated on the wooden stairs.

"Open up! Shield hero!"

"Huh?" He locked his door at night. After Myne suddenly appeared in his room, he wanted no further visitors.

"Hello?" As he slowly opened the door, coming face to face, several angry-looking knights glared at him.

"It's the Shield Hero!"

"Well, yeah. That's me." He deadpanned, even if he disliked this title, he couldn't help but play along.

Seriously! Why can't these guys call him by his name? King! It was not that hard!

_"Why do they glare at me so much? It is scary!" _Those hostile glares didn't help at all.

"The king has requested your immediate presence. We are to accompany you along the way."

"Requested my presence?" He questioned, earning a firm, but hostile nod.

"Come along now!"

"Ok. Wait a minute. I need to pack my things. Also, my companion…"

"Come along now!" The knight forcefully opened the door, grabbing his arm.

"I said, one minute. Let's be civilized here…" **'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'** "I don't want any trouble…"

That glare once more! That terrifying rumbling! It made even the veteran knight back away. Although King was only requesting it, his tone sounded more like a statement: "If you do not leave me alone... there will be consequences." Yes, the knights all shrunk into a defensive position upon hearing him. Despite being armored and armed whereas the man before them only had his Legendary Weapon... they didn't dare defy him.

Neither one of them wanted to be here. All of them heard the rumors reported by the Sword Hero! Be it those rumors were true or just mere constructs, attacking a hero — be it the Shield Hero or not — it was a bad omen.

"Fi-Fine! But be quick! We will wait for you here." Thus, the only thing they could do was to play along for now, hoping that he will come along willingly.

The heavy sword of justice will strike him down later! He couldn't possibly win against three heroes at once! Can he? One can only hope!

"Thank you…"

Being Myne was gone from her room the time he checked it, he came to the conclusion she went out to shop for some ingredients or something.

_"She most likely banged the door, and the owner let her out." _He concluded and was okay with it. They can meet later after that king stated what he wants.

"_Haah! This is so troublesome!"_

A carriage like the ones he saw earlier was there waiting for him, taking him directly to the palace. All along, two knights were pointing their weapons at him.

Asking them what this was about was pointless, they simply started to tremble, saying he will know when they reached the palace.

What can a man do in such a situation? Wait and hope for the best.

…

After reaching the palace, the knights escorted King before the royal court, into the same room where Aultcray received them previously.

It was quite an uncomfortable march; spears pointed against his back all the time. No! Better yet, a ring of guards with spears escorted him while walking, all along spears pointed at him from all directions.

_"It is like I was some kind of monster…" _he was quite uneasy, with so many pointy things pointed towards him.

Inside the court, members already awaited, many nobles, the king, and that small, foxy minister gathered inside. But what was more flabbergasting was the three other heroes, and… Myne?!

_"Oh! Most likely they notified her previously. Did she let me sleep in? How nice of her. Still, it's kinda awkward. I feel like I am the last to arrive." _In that case, she should've woken him up and dealt with it. He could have dealt with being a little bit sleepy, but arriving as the last? He felt uncomfortable with so many gazes aimed at him.

_"Maybe that's why the guard was so persistent. Telling to come as soon as possible." _Yes, the king must have insisted on coming as fast as possible, telling the guards to urge him.

_"Wait! I closed the door! Yes! She most likely already tried to wake me up! My sleep was just too deep!"_ In that case, why didn't she call for the owner and use a spare key? It was all so confusing.

_"No matter. I will get to know soon."_

"So… why are we all here? Has something important happened?" he asked, clueless, which strangely, earned even more glares from all around.

"You have the gall…!?" Motoyasu stepped forward, barely holding himself back. "After all you have done!? You dare to question what you did!?"

"Hmm, you lost me." Honestly, King had no idea what's going on. "Can you explain, please?"

"Lord Motoyasu, please, calm down. We will deal with this criminal the proper way." Aultcray raised his hand, and the spear hero backed, snarling at the strongest hero.

"So, can you tell me what's happened?"

"Tch! So you are still not willing to admit your sins? Even before my court, you refuse to confess? Fine then!" Aultcray waved.

"Myne, you poor damsel. Please, could you recount the case?" the old and wise looking king turned to the burgundy haired girl, watching her with a gentle expression. "Of course, if it's not too hard to recount. It must be traumatic."

Even her armor looked messed up, not even speaking about her scalp that was messily cut by a sharp object.

"Ye-Yes…" the beautiful girl gulped hard, fighting with her tears.

_"What's her problem? Did she have a nightmare or something?"_ Yes, it must be just that. Girls often cared more about their dreams than men did. But to call the whole court for a nightmare? That was a little too much.

"H-he raped me!" The beautiful lady pointed at the lean and tall guy, standing in the middle of the court. Her tone was already quivering, in the middle of breaking down.

"...Eh?"

"H-He just came into my room that night! He then tried to force himself on me! Saying, 'The night is still young! How about a little fun?' He reeked from alcohol the whole time!" her tears poured onto her cheeks; she was very convincing indeed. So much so, everyone started to glare at the blond adult in the middle of the court.

"I never thought you would go that far!" the one with bow said, sadness filling his heart.

"You monster!" the blonde college student with long hair tightened his grip on his spear, grinding his teeth in rage. He was ready to strike down the man! "But what did I expect? Looks like a brute and acts like a brute!"

"How disappointing…" the third one with the sword shook his head, all around, the people had already decided on the man's guilt.

_"Man, I want to quit being a hero… I want to go home!"_

Anyway, what's their problem? They can't possibly believe what the girl just said. Just because she had a bad dream? That's such bullshit!

"Hmm, any proof?" Questioned King. He will not go to prison just because a girl had a nightmare. Him, raping someone? He never even had a normal relationship! It was all absurd! Bullshit!

_"Even if I want to, I don't have enough strength to force anything on anyone."_

True, he had fantasies about the girls in the dating simulators he played, but that's it! It's alright, no? They were only virtual, after all!

"Silence, fiend!" Aultcray bellowed.

He seriously had no idea what their problem was. It was so tiring; he just wanted to go home. "_Sigh_…"

"After all you've done, and you still have the nerve to sigh before my court!? You brutally committed rape against my dear countryman, you villain! If you weren't one of the four heroes, I would've executed you on the spot!"

Aultcray flatly declared. King hardly ever saw a glare filled with that much hate. Only monsters he 'faced' had that sort of glare. That guy definitely wasn't just acting, he really just disliked him.

"Hmm, sorry to say this, but I have no idea what you have been speaking about. Myne, what's going on there? Did you have a nightmare? You know, it is not nice to frame others."

"Kyuuu!" The girl hid behind the spear hero, looking tearful. "Lo-Lord Motoyasu! Protect me!"

"Don't worry, I will protect you!" He whispered, turning his gaze back to King. "I request permission to kill this bastard!"

And now they want to kill him? Great, just what he needed.

It was strange, as King looked at Myne, she mirthfully stuck her tongue out, pulling her eyelid down, as if mocking him.

_"What's her problem now?" _If this was a joke, it was awful, poorly constructed, and tasteless. One should not frame others, that's why many young men feared a serious relationship, because some women had this kind of humor.

"He not only raped poor Myne, he even raised the ire of all the monsters around, knocking us out for the day." All the nobles gasped, even more hate aimed against The Strongest Hero.

_"I hate the way they look at me. So damn scary!"_

"Not only a rapist, but also hindering his fellow heroes? How low you can go, Shield?" Aultcray looked actually disgusted, even turning his head away.

"Umm… I did say to run away." King stated, sweat dropping slightly.

What kind of idiot stands in the way of a horde of monsters? It is quite apparent they will be trampled over if they try so. More so if they are low leveled, and they were DPS characters instead of tanks, no less? They would not last long.

How is it his fault that they're complete idiots?

"It is their own fault, not running away from a wall of monsters. And I can't help it; they started to pursue me."

"Then you should have faced them courageously! Taking the mantle to protect your fellows! Aren't shields meant for that? Coward!"

The hell he is talking about? Facing all those nasty things alone? No way! He will die instantly!

"I refuse to let myself be killed."

"Yo-You curl! Isn't your task to protect the people!? But what did we expect? The accursed shield ran away from problems, like always." This guy had some serious anger management issues. King couldn't help but think that way.

_"He seriously needs a consultant…"_

"I can hardly protect people if I get killed. To protect them, I need strength, to that, I need to level up." He tried to reason. Even if he would be not a coward, he would still be a logically thinking man; there was no way to face so many monsters at once at a low level. Even at a high level, it was questionable that he could tank that many.

It cannot be helped, those things really had a vast aggro range, or reacted to one of their comrades being in trouble, attacking him. He couldn't do anything about it.

_"I don't even know where all of those things came from." _One moment, there was barely a few; and in the next, a whole army pursued him.

"That's true…" Came a few whispers around, the people considering what he said. Aultcray right away glared at them, and the people in the room become quiet once again.

"You dare to defy our judgment!? You dare!?"

"Are you saying... I am a liar?" The statement froze everyone in the room, the moving air had suddenly stilled in place, and the pressure was suffocating, making people shudder. '**Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!…'** the King Engine started, as King was afraid they could not be reasoned with.

"If it's some kind of play, it is not funny. Myne, I don't know what you remember from last night, but when I found you in my room, you said you were a sleepwalker. After that, I escorted you back."

"Yo-You locked me in my room! You drugged me! I swear! He drugged me and forced himself on me! Lord Motoyasu! Please! You must believe me!"

"Any test to prove your statement?"

"..." With no answer, Myne remained silent, even turning her head away, biting her lips.

"Myne…?" Motoyasu and the rest of the heroes looked at the girl questioningly, she was completely cornered.

"Myne, why are you lying?"

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

That menacing sound again! A chill and immense dread filled the girl.

"It is not nice to lie… or frame people because of a bad dream."

"I, I am not lying! I swear!" She trembled! This man was a monster! He cannot be denied! Did he know of her intentions all along!?

He didn't move an inch! Was he facing everyone without a flinch!? Was he not even angry!? Was he even human!?

"I locked you to not wander away at night, since as you said, you are a sleepwalker. As for drugging you?" King tilted his head, completely confused. "Maybe you drank too much wine?" He questioned again, those eyes of his as hard as steel, questioning the very being of the girl.

"I-I am not! I swear!" Her words were shaking, her whole body was shaking, fearing her secret will be exposed. "I-I…"

"Yeah! Right! She told us what you did! You drugged her with wine after abusing her outside on the field! Giving her a bad haircut! Ruining even her armor, you beast!"

"Eh?" What the heck they are saying? "Her hair was cut when my legendary weapon repulsed a sword I tried to use. The army of balloons outside trampled over her when I tried to draw them away. As for drugging her…" King recovered the bill the alchemist gave him from his bag.

"First, test her for drugs if you don't believe me. Secondly, I have proof it was just healing potion, stomach medicine, and a few herbs we bought. No drugs present on the list."

"Yeah, he mentioned his stomach is bad…" the Bow Hero whispered, and Ren nodded, since he as well heard it. "It's true, as well. We can only use our legendary weapons. All other weapons are immediately repelled."

"That's still…!" Motoyasu still didn't want to believe it, it must be some scheme this man was playing. His feelings told him! It couldn't be the adorable Myne playing anything malicious! ...Right?

"You can also ask the people in the town, the blacksmith and the alchemist. She must have had a bad dream, mixing it with reality."

Ren walked to King — albeit, trying to keep his calm, as after what witnessed he was slightly afraid of this man. After all, who wouldn't when knowing this man single-handedly destroyed an entire forest of monsters?

"Hmm…" After checking King's list, he nodded. "How should we know it is not a forgery?"

"Ask the alchemist." That was his only answer. Seriously, he had no clue what was their problem. Not to mention, the stamp on the receipt also proved that it was not a forgery.

The day before they were glad that he came, the next day they tried to frame him? What kind of sick game was this? He just couldn't follow their thinking anymore.

"We will…" Itsuki hummed, trying to be a neutral judge. Indeed, it was true. He also saw King running towards them, shouting for them to flee. In a sense, it was his own fault for not retreating, even after seeing all those balloons piled up behind him.

"Lord Motoyasu! You had to believe me! H-He…"

_"Sigh! This is so tiring."_

"Enough! Are you willing to face our judgment!?" Aultcray was seriously pissed, even grabbing the arms of his seat, squeezing it with all his anger.

"...If my innocence is questioned, I have no other choice."

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

"So, you are ready to fight!?"

"As said, if I have no choice, I will…"

Everyone flinched. This man was relentless, even after weapons pointed at him, he watched them with pity, with a completely apathetic expression. Almost as if he was saying, 'You can't hurt me with those…'

"You damn…!"

"Considering your expression, my presence here is not well-liked. In that case, simply send me back to my world. I would rather not remain in a place where my presence is not needed."

_"Please! Pretty please! Send me back!"_

"Ho-How dare!? After all the crime you just committed you want to back out!?" Motoyasu shouted, completely pissed at how cowardly this man acted.

"You can call me whatever you want…" King lowered his head for a moment. "…But I didn't commit the crimes you accuse me of and have no mood to play your game. So, either send me back and summon a new hero, or I leave, searching on my own."

Aultcray groaned as he held his head. "Unfortunately, there isn't a known method to send heroes back to their own worlds... Even if we wanted to re-summon new heroes, all of the current ones would first need to perish."

_"What!? Killed!?" _He was a coward, yes! Definitely not a hero material! But dying? No way in hell did he want to die!

"... Wh-why?"

"What the..."

"I-It's got to be a lie..."

The other three heroes, bewildered, responded in unison.

No magic could return them to their old world? It was a crushing revelation.

"_Shit…"_ He was in deep trouble. He knew that they mentioned something similar on the first day. But he thought it was some bluff to keep them demanding the topic any further. Who the hell thought it was the case for real!?

"In that case, there is no time to waste. I will leave to search for a way." There has to be some way! There is no way he is stuck here with an apocalyptic scenario on the horizon!

_"There has to be some way…"_

Turning around, King started to walk away. There was no time to waste. Also, he was so strained; he barely managed to move, or even stand straight. His stomach started to cramp once again!

_"I just want to go home! Please! Let me go home!"_

"Yo-You!?" the king's face couldn't be redder after seeing the man turning his back on him; it looked like he can blow up at any moment. "Detain him in an instant!" immediately; numerous weapons pointed against him.

King stood motionlessly, like a living statue, not even flinching as the weapons pointed directly at him, his hands in his pockets.

This made him look like a person who was not afraid at all despite all the weapons pointed at him, making him look even more intimidating.

_"Holy shit!? Will I die here!?"_

**'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'**

The King engine started once again in a greater rhythm, giving the already intimidating 'hero' an even more menacing presence.

"Ah-Ahhh!"

"We are not finished, Shield! How dare you show your back to us!?"

"As I said…" King only glanced back. "I have no time for this, show me real proof about the case, and I will oblige. Until then, it is a case of false accusation I am not willing to play along with." Gold diggers and beautiful women with little to no wealth have this tactic when they want something, or, at least, that's what he read.

Or that she was simply delirious and had the inclination to come up with random things? He had no idea. "Call me again if you have more proof than the accusing words of a sleepwalker. Until then, I go my own way."

This is one of the reasons why he didn't have a girlfriend, he read too many cases where this happened, and he became paranoid after a while. The hell he wants to get framed like this! He rather had no real girlfriend at all to avoid the hassle.

_"The other reason is because I am a notorious loner. Who wants the hassle of someone else hanging around in their flat all the time? Messing up my stuff? Ordering me around? No way!"_

It was more satisfying playing with a dating simulator.

_"I can design the girls however I like! It is ten times easier, and if they get displeased, I can always load a previous save!"_

Just imagining about fun he had with his games filled with him with joy!

Anyway, with his fame as a hero, even if he wanted to, he couldn't know a girl casually. He tried, once. The entire time the girl just asked about his work, praising that he is the best. Etc… Etc… He didn't need that.

_"It was honestly annoying…" _Never again would he expose himself to such annoyance and strain.

"Fine then!" the king snarled, his tone venomous! "Go then, Shield! Die alone on the field! But hear me out! We may not punish you now due to your status as a trump card, but be aware! We spread the news of your crimes to the people! That will be your punishment. Don't even think about finding suitable work in my country."

"Duly noted…" King answered only as such, walking towards the entrance, the two guards, of course, crossed their spears before him.

"Just let me go."

"We can't seriously let him go! He…" Motoyasu wanted to go after him, planning to beat him up, yet Ren stopped him.

"I advise against it…" Ren grabbed his shoulder, holding him back.

"But he…"

"He killed all the balloons with just one calculated hit," He whispered. "He was the one who devastated that place."

"You cannot possibly believe that ridiculous rumor! He…"

"I know because I witnessed it firsthand!" Ren confirmed, making the ones heard him extremely pale. "With just one strike, he killed all the monsters, ruining that part of the forest. It is hard to admit, but he is not someone any of us, even combined can face with our current strength."

"Dammit!" Motoyasu bit his lip, lowering his head in shame.

"Let him go…" Aultcray ordered, sweating heavily after hearing what Ren said. "The people will deal with him. He will not last long alone."

With that, King left the court.

"Damn you Shield! Damn you!" Aultcray muttered, powerless, lowering his head. That day, not even moving, King utterly defied all his authority and power. He couldn't do anything to him!

What happened today, everyone would remember for a long time!

That day! The day The World's Strongest Man left a deep impression in the royal court of Melromarc! So deep, it made them question the authority of their own king. In fact, in front of King himself, their own king was sorely underwhelming in comparison!

Where will his way lead? His legendary tales will tell you!

Only one thing is sure: 'Being a hero is such a bother…' Until next time, Shield Hero!

* * *

**AN:**

**Well, that's it for now!**

**Sorry for the long wait, life and other stuff took my time.**

**In the next chapter, the journey of The Strongest Man continues onward!**

**Where does his path lead? You will see it!**

**Until then!**

**Be good! Good day! Good night! Safe winds! Be safe! Until next time!**

**RnR!**

**Read and Review!**

**Send a PM if you have questions.**

**Oblivon2991 out!**


	3. The Meaning of Hero (part 1)

**Written by Oblivon2991**

**Proofread: The usual drunken gang of misfits and TranscendedPotato**

**Thank you for reading my fanfiction and for giving me a chance.**

**My mother tongue isn't English, so please be patient about the grammatical issues.**

**I don't own One Punch Man anime/manga/webcomic, it belongs to ONE.**

**I don't own The Rising of the Shield Hero (Japanese: ****盾の勇者の成り上がり****, Hepburn: Tate no Y****ū****sha no Nariagari), it is written by Aneko Yusagi.**

**If you have anything to add or have questions, or remark, please review, or send a PM.**

**Thank you!**

**Now let's start the story!**

**(So, this is the proofread version of the same chapter, I cut the actual chapter two because honestly it grew to be 25k word+! Hopefully, it is more digestable. Who read it before, only the way of meeting Raph will changes slightly, nothing drastic)**

* * *

**Chapter 3: The Meaning of Hero (Part 1)**

* * *

"_Sigh..._ Dammit…"

Exhausted and downtrodden, King walked down on the main street.

It was some time since that event in the throne room played out, yet, he was still confused about what he had went through in that place.

To be honest, it was like a badly written play. Why would his companion want to frame him? Even if mentally confused — remembering false events due to a very lifelike dream — people wouldn't just accuse others with sexual assault on a dime! Without evidence, no less! That's not what normal people would do!

Still, perhaps it was better this way, remaining alone like usual. At least he didn't need to worry about her expenses, nor be bothered by her every day. If he had to constantly deal with her sleep-walking and her immediately judging a dream to be a reality... he'd rather take his chances with the monsters alone! As for taking other companions...

_"What if they get seriously injured? Or worse, died? What do I tell their families?"_

There was no way he wanted to tell a grieving family that he was the cause of their beloved one's death, due to his inability to protect them as a shield-user!

_"Even if it means going alone, and though my chances of dying are almost at 100%, maybe it's better than the other option…"_

King was weak, he'd admit that. He was a coward! There was no doubt of that! He tried to tell people many times he was just a good-for-nothing Otaku who rather spend his time in isolation with his anime and games, and there was a better chance of a random block of tofu saving them than him! He was quite literally worthless as a fighter!

Yet whenever he tried to muster his courage... it fell down like a pile of uneven, random mishmash of lego bricks stacked together. No less than 3 seconds, and it'll fall apart. Even if he tried, they'd just misinterpret what he said!

_"No one ever understands what I mean… I'm just a weakling! I can't protect anyone!"_

If someone joined his group and got injured or died because of him, he wouldn't know how he'd bear the guilt. Just leaving the monsters to the civilians back in his old world placed a heavy weight on his chest, taking responsibility for a member dead on his behalf... he wouldn't be able to shoulder it — no, he'd be utterly crushed by it. There was no normal person that could shrug off the death of someone like it was a piece of paper! Not unless they were monsters!

_"Worse… after finding out how weak and utterly incompetent I am, they would surely gang up against me and beat me to a pulp."_

Maybe he was just more afraid of this than the other consequences. Deep down, perhaps he was just selfishly looking for his own self-interests.

_"Yeah... that's probably it."_

One of the reasons why he didn't take any apprentices like Bang or Atomic Samurai was exactly this.

_"I remember many people, fans, and lower-ranked heroes, asking me- begging me to teach them. I refused each and every one of them. Saying that I cannot teach them, and they always respond; 'I see. I am not yet worthy for your teachings.' And then they leave."_

_"But in truth, I meant what I said. I cannot teach them... It's simply because I have nothing to teach; there is nothing they can learn from me! Why don't they understand...?!"_

"Hey, Shield!"

"Huh?"

Looking straight ahead, King noticed a bald, dark-skinned man looking at him.

_"That guy…"_ King recognized him instantly; that was Erhard, the town's best blacksmith, at least, according to Myne. King still remembered him; after all, he was the one that sold him what he was currently wearing.

_"Hmm... he's bald, like Saitama. Maybe he trained until his hair fell out, as well?" _King thought. He still couldn't believe anyone would want to train to the point that their hair falls out — maybe it was due to the stress. He's never even trained a day in his life, doing something like that was way out of his league.

"Yes?" As for him not saying his 'name' properly, he couldn't care less; he already got used to it, just like when someone calls him 'S-Class Hero King'. 'Shield Hero', 'Shield', 'S-Class Hero', or even 'The Strongest man on Earth!' it was all the same to him.

"I heard about what you did. You raped that companion of yours, didn't you? Allow me to hit you once myself." Erhard said with his arms crossed.

This again? King was tired of this bullcrap!

This was a different world, so he couldn't say much, but one thing he could complain about was the common sense in this world! Did no one ever doubt or anything? The moment he left the castle, everyone started looking at him weirdly, he could hear some women whispering 'rapist' behind him. Did they want him to hear it or something?!

_"Raping a woman? As if! I haven't even graduated from virginity yet!" _Yep, he was going to be a wizard soon. As shameful as it is, an S-Class hero like himself is still a virgin. Then again, dealing with a girlfriend was a whole can of worms King wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole.

_"Anyway, not long after I left the castle, everyone's been avoiding me like crazy. I know rapists are disliked, but this kind of reaction? It's like I'm carrying the second plague with me!"_

"Hmm. I've explained this to them once, and I tried to clear it up twice. That was a false accusation. I did no such thing. She simply confused a nightmare with reality."

And that was the truth! That was logic! That was common sense! Why would he want to rape the only person that wanted to join him? That wasn't what normal people did! Or was the sense of the norm completely warped in this new world?

"Tch!" Erhard violently grabbed King's chainmail, scowling. It was like he was about to beat him up. As a blacksmith and former adventurer, he was much stronger than an average person. If it was say, a random 20 year old university student, it'd have been enough force to lift them off the ground! But against the Shield Hero...

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble…]**

"That sound… I've heard that it was the sound you make when you're ready for battle, so is that it, you're ready for a fight!?"

_"Sigh..." _That apathetic stare! That grab barely shook him; it was as if there was a statue wearing that chainmail, completely motionless and uncaring! Thinking back, he also heard rumors that this hero had utterly overwhelmed all the other three heroes, AND decimated an entire section of the forest with one punch... a former adventurer he may be, but there was a chance he might've bitten off more than he could chew.

Then again, what was to be expected? King was level 29, after all! That was comparable to a rampaging beast in the forest, almost like a manticore, or a chimera!

Slowly but surely, Erhard could feel a slight tremor, a vibration that started off bit by bit, before growing into a pulse, the beat of this man's war-drum, the only thing holding back that endless bloodlust underneath his skin! Looking back at King... Erhard noticed his apathetic expression changed. It was no longer a face of apathy-

It was killing intent.

"I've said this once, and I've said it twice. I hate repeating myself... but I'll make an exception for you, seeing as you provided me with some armor, after all."

"If my innocence is under suspicion, then I have no other choice." His menacing face made even Erhard's own expression crack in nervousness, King's voice unwavering, his tone filled with determination. It was as if this man would get ready to fight to the death- no, commence a slaughter at the drop of a hat.

But in truth, King was just afraid this man would hurt his 'pretty' face.

"Tch!" Erhard loosened his fist, letting King's chainmail go, and the King Engine's rhythmic thrumming slowly simmering down, as if disappointed by a lack of conflict.

"You changed your mind?"

"Your eyes, your tone… you're telling the truth."

"I've already said so; the rumors are false. To believe such a ludicrous statement without any proof is the height of foolishness." King said, unconsciously criticizing the king of Melromarc and his court. "If you'll excuse me, I need to go now…" With that, King turned his back to Erhard, walking away so casually, as if he didn't just threaten the man with an aura that would give even the most battle-scarred mercenaries pause.

"Huh, that guy... he's a real piece of work." The smith muttered in the end, smirking with satisfaction as he retreated in his shop, closing the door for a moment... to grab his wildly thumping chest, his heart beating like he faced a monster- no, he DID face a monster. "The rumors were not wrong… his presence alone... is suffocating! I should count myself lucky he didn't pick a fight, I suppose."

"That was close! Man, I was almost punched!" Not far away, in a hidden alley, King sighed, relieved the blacksmith didn't try to punch him. "Let's not try that again…"

* * *

**Scene Change: Somewhere in a different country: Sometime later:**

"My queen!"

"Report!"

With a majestic motion, the queen raised her fan, elegantly fanning herself, covering half of her face.

She was mature and beautiful, her violet hair, combed to a bob with long bangs, complementing her elegant royal gown. Under the moonlight that lit her luxurious office, she looked even more mysterious.

"The Cardinal heroes have been summoned."

Silence descended in the lavish room, and the queen closed her fan, hitting her hand hard.

"Are you sure your information is correct?" She asked, her eyes squinting angrily.

"Yes, my queen. Your husband ordered the start of the ritual, summoning not one, but all four heroes in Melromarc."

"…" Blood sprouted from the queen's lip as she bit on it with force, showing an expression that was the sign of her barely contained rage.

'Creak!' Even her fan started to crack in her grip.

If not for the strict training that prepared this Shadow before her for every possible outcome and scenario — steeling their nerves to the absolute limit — she would have stiffened, showing concern. Yet, like this, the expression of the dark hooded girl remained unchanged.

"That idiot…" The queen swore under her breath, her servant remained silent, still lowering her head under her mask. It was not every day she heard her queen swearing — No! She never before heard her queen uttering such unsightly words!

"Your Majesty?"

"Tell me, how are they treating the Cardinal Hero of Shield?"

"So far, he hasn't received the same treatment as the other three Cardinal Heroes. After their arrival, king Aultcray dismissed his presence, preferring to favor the other three heroes instead. More so, princess Malty even tried to frame him with the false charge of rape."

"Tch! Are you sure it was a false charge?"

"Indeed, my queen. We kept the heroes under constant surveillance since their summoning. The only thing we can accuse the Cardinal Hero of the Shield is the care he showed towards the princess's well-being, mistakenly believing that she is a sleepwalker after she attempted to drug him and steal his possessions — locking her door to prevent her from wandering away and hurting herself in the night."

"_Sigh..._ My husband and that girl will ruin me one day…" Leaning back in her lavish seat, the queen showed an exhausted expression. Indeed, no matter how much she loved those two, they were tough to bear from time to time.

The Shield Hero showed care to her, yet she tried to frame him for rape? Honestly, where did she learn these kinds of things? Aultcray's discrimination against the Shield Hero, perhaps, but where did she learn to lie so easily?

In a way, the problem was not her daughter, but her husband. He was so innocent and naive, like any other child, easily manipulated by her daughters.

But maybe, it was her fault; she foolishly trusted her husband to raise her in her place while she traveled abroad for the kingdom's business. When she came back... Malty was no longer the same.

_"Leaving Malty with Aultcray was the worst decision I've ever made in my life. Let's hope Siltvelt won't hear about this, or else they'll declare war…"_ She really hoped that wouldn't be the case. A war was the last thing their kingdom needed.

_"We don't need a war right now, with the waves coming and all…"_

"According to our investigations, The Church of the Three Heroes might be collaborating with the princess. They were the ones who proposed the summoning of all the heroes to Melromarc."

"I see…" Mirellia was not even surprised. Why would she? That religion was suspicious ever since they first appeared. Why would they paint one of the heroes as the devil? It made no sense.

_"Be it our national religion or not; some of their writings make absolutely no sense…"_

"Tell me, at least; how does the Shield Hero fare now? Did my 'dear' husband imprison him? Or…"

"No, my queen. Despite the false charges. The Shield Hero managed to convince the court and the other three heroes about his innocence, bringing up logical reasons. Despite this, King Aultcray still banished him from the palace, and spread lies about him."

"I see…" the Queen lowered her head, sighing in disappointment. "Support him in every way you can. Subtly, as usual."

"Very well, but with all due respect, I think that will be not necessary for the Shield Hero."

"How so?" Queen Mirellia raised her head, raising her brow intrigue for the first time since this conversation started.

"I think… you'll need to see it to understand, my Queen." Recovering a crystal ball, the Shadow started to replay the fight in the forest.

...

...

"H-He destroyed that entire section of the forest!? With just the chain reaction of one punch!? He even managed to attract such a large army of orange balloons with just a few well-placed screams! Did the Shield Hero plan all of it out?!" Even the well-experienced and usually calm and collected Queen gaped at the scene, seeing the impossible event playing again in the recording.

She couldn't help but slump back in her seat, her face filled with disbelief and traces of fear.

"Just who is he? What kind of…"

"His name is… King."

"What?"

"He introduced himself as the 'S-Ranked Hero King' to King Aultcray."

Mirellia gulped, unsure if they had summoned a monster or the sovereign of a powerful nation. Or was he something else entirely? He mentioned being a hero in the report, did his old world have monsters as well?

If so, how did they summon him? The summoning ritual was supposed to summon heroes from a far-away land to combat the monster waves, but so far in history, the summoned heroes never had monsters in their original world before! They were always, as they said themselves, 'ordinary civilians' from a 'peaceful world'.

He introduced himself as 'King'... did he not reveal his actual name because he felt no need for it — but to only give away his former position? But he also said that he was an 'S-Ranked Hero'... Was he both a Hero and a King in his former world? A Hero King? That was... to say that he was the most influential hero that has ever been summoned throughout history would be an understatement!

Or did he just want to subtly mock Aultcray for his impolite behavior? For once in her life, she was completely unsure. But just by watching the recording, he was definitely a dangerous man. A being with such destructive power that even with their country's military might, should never be offended! But despite that, her idiot of a husband decided to do so over old grievances that didn't make sense!

"K-Keep an eye on him, and offer assistance whenever he requires it. Make sure that no matter what, he doesn't notice your presence."

"Yes, my queen. It shall be done." With that, the Shadow disappeared from her room, leaving no trace of her existence.

"That idiot!" 'Creak!' The queen sat on her chair with excessive force. It was all too much to bear for now.

That night, Mirellia didn't sleep for even a minute.

Just how was she going to fix the mess that her idiot husband and daughter caused? Even the otherwise apt queen had to think this through more thoroughly, or all will be lost!

* * *

**Scene Change: Inn: Night:**

A few days later, King was in an inn eating a cheap meal, unable to decide on what to do to solve his current predicament.

"Another long day…" Sighing reluctantly, he felt miserable, as always. After all, what he'd consider his only comfort in his old world was thrown out of the window.

Now? He had actually to work to kill some monsters; perhaps this was retribution; his punishment for having all the rewards of an S-Class hero yet having killed no monsters. Now? If he didn't kill monsters, he wouldn't level up, and that'd mean he would be absolutely screwed when the 'waves' arrived. This was all he could do to stay alive!

Like all the other days, today was a long day.

Since this morning, he went out, tried to gather as much information as possible, farmed for experience, trying his damned best to level up and learn what else he could do with that 'Legendary Shield' of his. The only good thing about it was that it was unbreakable — At least so far. There was no monster that was able to pierce through his shield, but simply assuming it to be so would be tantamount to suicide.

_"Ever since that day, I barely raised a few levels…" _King thought, depressed. No matter the number of monsters he tried to kill, no matter what tactics he used to farm... he's never leveled up more than once a day. In some cases, he wouldn't even level up at all! That was the slowest progress he'd ever seen in his life! In most games, the first few days would be enough to level up to at least level 10 or 20, and then journey to the next zone in order to level up more.

...It's been almost a week, and yet he hasn't even leveled up more than three times aside from that time he got to level 29 after a massive section of the forest was suddenly decimated in front of him.

That led him to the conclusion that... when his mysterious savior killed all the monsters in front of him, a portion of the EXP was rewarded to him, as well — the other explanation was the awfully optimized leveling curve.

But how? According to how this game-like world functioned, EXP was only shared between party members, and the one that contributed the most obviously gets the bigger share of the EXP.

Was the one that saved him an ally to him, hence the shared EXP? Then, King had a mind to believe that Saitama was the one that saved him again.

_"Then why he didn't stopped to at least say 'hello'?"_

This was still a question he didn't yet found an answer.

Aside from this, he still wondered just how much EXP must that have been, if King, who did nothing, managed to level up all the way from 1 to 29?

Despite that huge boost, King only managed to raise his levels up to 33 throughout the week, despite his best efforts to grow stronger, he only managed this much alone.

Still, every human would naturally urge themselves to seek good things in their life. That's how humans worked. Even King tried to see the bright side of his situation.

If people were depressed all the time, they wouldn't even have the will to live, and most would simply commit suicide in their hopelessness.

Yet, no matter how much King tried to find the bright side of things, he was still unable to come to terms with the current situation. Every cloud had a silver lining, but this cloud was a thunderstorm. Even if there was a silver lining, King wasn't able to see it through all the rain and thunder.

_"At least I opened a few more shields…"_

That was progress; he should be glad for! When he started, he only had his basic shield.

_"Now I have the balloon shield, leaf shield, pickaxe shield, rope shield…" _And he could continue listing them for some time. King definitely busied himself throughout the entire week. After all, it was the basics of any RPG game, raising levels, and upgrading equipment. If he could farm no more, he could do at least this much.

If he was like the other summoned heroes, his progress could be considered slow- but in his opinion, he did quite a lot! Despite the level advantage, he definitely didn't slack off during the farming process, and he had to do what the other heroes did... all on his own, while they all had their parties to ease their burdens.

It was true that he preferred to go alone either way, but still- they had an advantage that he didn't!

Still, not only did he unlock as many shields as possible, but it also became more obvious that as the 'Shield Hero'... his defenses and natural resistances against other attacks were incredibly high!

It was both assuring and disturbing.

On one hand, he could walk through a swarm of rampaging balloons like nothing at his current level. Hell, he could even ignore some of the other enemies as well, like basic wolves, and other smaller monsters he encountered. — Maybe it was due to his general increase in stats.

At his current level, not only were the basic monsters unable to penetrate his defense — but his strength also grew along with it — albeit not as much as his defense stat, which made sense. Still, at his current level, he was plenty of strong to consider his progress great from his basic state of being.

...He wasn't very strong originally anyway, but his progress was still great in his eyes.

His basic punches, though sloppy and untrained, could easily pop those starter balloons, and in terms of pure, brute strength, he was around twice as strong as the common bear.

Those were incredibly strong punches compared to normal humans, but comparing them to the heroes he usually worked along — not the ones he was summoned with, but the real, Heroes Association heroes — it was nothing noteworthy to mention.

Heroes like Tank-Top Master, Superalloy Darkshine, hell, even Puri-Puri Prisoner would trounce that level of strength easily without even trying.

_"Well, at least I can't get hurt by them. But I would rather not get overconfident. Who knows when a monster that can ignore armor or defense will appear…" _He'd encounter monsters like that in games all the time in order to cause trouble for defense-spec characters; he'd rather not encounter them here when his only strengths were his defenses and resistances.

On the other hand, his attack power was still dangerously low — raised from the base value of '11' , the value he was summoned with — but there was nothing noteworthy about it. His physical strength was definitely improved, but it was nothing compared to monsters on the same level.

_"True, I received some thorn damage thanks to the strange spiked fruit and those thorny monster parts my shield absorbed; still, I can only use it to defend myself for practical reasons."_

Thorn damage was not unknown to him. It was present in most RPG games he played with.

Basically, certain plants evolved thorns to protect themselves from being eaten, as simple as that. Inspired by this, certain classes came up with methods to cover themselves with 'thorns' to discourage others from attacking them or by damaging their attacker by just defending and blocking.

It was that simple!

_"For a tank class, it comes in very handy. By just defending, I can damage opponents."_

Of course, the damage was far from ideal, but this little boost was more than nothing. At least, it was enough against those balloons and lower-tier monsters he encountered around and near the town.

_"I suppose that's better than nothing…"_

Still, King wasn't dense. He knew that he was rather high-leveled for his current situation, and he only managed to level up so far due to the fact that when his mysterious savior destroyed that entire swarm of enemies chasing after him, some of the EXP from those monsters were transferred to him.

Because of his high level, despite his best efforts and tactics — tactics he learned from games and other media, such as laying traps to ensnare mobs so that he could take them down without any real danger, kiting a large number of mobs and killing them slowly with his shield charge, etc. Everything he could think of worth little to nothing to help his leveling process.

_"I need to come up something fast, or that wave thing will kill me…"_

Though despite his hardships, this world, with this game-like system, was to his liking.

For the first time in his life, he truly felt stronger! Not only did he dared to stand up to his enemies — where he'd normally shy away from, he felt as if he was just playing a game in front of his television!

Though, of course, it wasn't like he didn't have any complaints about the system. What kind of bullshit was giving a class a shield — but not a weapon? If he was not allowed to have a weapon, he may as well play as a brawler class!

...Yeah, no. He wasn't Saitama. He'd rather use a shield than just tank it out with his body alone.

But even with the similarities to those games he used to play, it felt slightly different from that. Maybe because it was because he was actually doing all of this himself, instead of pushing buttons behind a screen?

_"Well, it looks like playing all those games are finally paying out in the end."_

His stamina, his strength, his durability, etc were also increased accordingly to his stats! He felt more confident after every level up! He was less tired from day after day of venturing out.

_"It's almost like that manga with that 'Gamer' system…" _It resembled that manga a great bit, but really, the only resemblance between this world and that manga was that he could obtain higher and higher stats with every 'level-up' he undergoes.

For just the slightest of moments, King started to believe that his current predicament was not as hopeless as it first seemed, just for the inescapable reality of his situation to crush him in the next moment.

That apocalyptic 'wave' was still over the horizon, and he had less than a month deal with it and level enough to survive.

Also, he was no closer to finding a way home! His resistances and defense stats might be high, but his damage was still low for his level, his confidence wasn't high enough to warrant wandering away farther from the town- and alone? Of course not!

Who knows what awaited him in the deeper regions of the forest!? He might be found and eaten by a huge monster that was much higher-leveled than him! Sure, the idea of the 'leveling zones' wouldn't allow that, but this was a different world, who knows what might happen?! What if he survives in the stomach of a creature that swallows him, just to get digested slowly and painfully?!

He could hardly imagine a worse fate. His damage stat was low; he couldn't use bladed weapons to cut himself out; there was no way for him to escape once he was swallowed!

...Thinking back, King suddenly pitied the monsters that ended up in Pig God's stomach. Though they were monsters that desired death and destruction, being eaten by Pig God was a fate he wasn't able to imagine.

_"I'm so scared… no, I'm terrified!"_

Despite King's rather high level, he was not confident at all that he could survive that wave with the incredible difficulty — a wave that was said to have almost wiped out the entire army of the kingdom and all the other adventurers that tried to fight it!

How did they expect him and those other three summoned heroes to fight against something like that!?

Not to mention, according to his interactions with the other three heroes before he was banished from the castle; all of them were civilians! Not one of them had actual fighting experience at all, and they were treating the whole thing like a game!

Still, seeing as they came from a peaceful world without monsters, King could see why they'd see it that way.

King felt somewhat sorry for them. They didn't see the situation like he did; they were transported to a completely different world where you had to kill to get stronger, and monsters ran rampantly everywhere. The technology was drastically worse than their old world; they were basically in the middle ages! Once reality hit them, they'd be hit. Hard.

A playboy, a self-indulged little kid, and a random high-school student. Not one of them were trained for this situation!

If instead the heroes were summoned from where he was originally came from, they'd at least know that the situation was more dire than it seemed — though they'd recognize him as King and that was another can of worms he didn't want to deal with — and if they were pro heroes, the better!

If say, Silver Fang, Atomic Samurai, Flashy Flash, Tatsumaki, Superalloy Darkshine, had either one of them taken his place, the current situation would've been solved! Even one of them could probably fend off the 'waves' on their own.

Tatsumaki might've been the best choice. With her superior psychic powers, she would've suppressed those monsters in an instant with her immense psychic powers. She was one strong esper.

King sighed. _"If it wasn't for that apocalyptic 'wave' approaching in less than a month, I would be a lot less stressed. I wouldn't have been running around in circles finding mobs to kill, but instead find a calm place where I can at least get some info on how I can get home, or even slowly leveling up collecting ingredients, crafting or killing lower level monsters without endangering myself. But like this? This world so pushy! I don't want it! I want to go home!"_

He hated such pushy and violent games! They scared away their player base in no time! As much as the system of the game-like world worked, he'd rather go back to his original world — where he at least had a chance to scare away the mysterious beings — before going back to his apartment and play his games — like the antisocial otaku loser he was.

The thing about his old world was that his false reputation worked in his favor. He could intimidate the monsters away, or at least trick them into surrendering or distracting them long enough for another hero to appear and deal with them for him.

Here? All the monsters were real monsters, they wanted to kill him whether he was high-leveled or not.

_"I need to carefully consider how to proceed… I barely have three weeks before that 'wave' hits."_

If one wanted to level effectively and quickly, usually, one needed to gamble and venture out for greater difficulty areas, farm the monsters for more EXP with their party — or do it alone, risking their life by fighting stronger monsters.

Alternatively, one could complete a quest that was worth a lot of experience points — maybe go dungeon-delving for greater gear and rewards.

In his current situation, however…

_"That's easier said than done…" _In most games, he would do it even if it was a timed mission or speed-run, and risk dying as he was confident he could start again, respawn, or just reload the previous save.

But now?

Endangering his own life?

Hahahahaha... No.

_"I'm certain there's no resurrection or respawning in this world…"_ And even if there was, he wasn't stupid enough to try his luck. As said, he was never that lucky a person. If anything, Lady Luck seemed to love watching him suffer. It was shameful, but he'd rather let the other three 'heroes' find that out.

_"Sigh..."_

But what was he to do? He couldn't really do much with his current situation.

The monsters around the town were too weak for him to gain EXP anymore. True, collecting ingredients and crafting potions would still earn him some small bit of EXP. That was a staple in games, as well. But that amount of EXP was just a pitiful little drop of water in the bucket that was considered his EXP bar. There was no way he could level up effectively by doing just that all the time.

Thanks to his currently high level, the potions and other things he could craft barely got him any substantial amount of EXP. Currently, if he wanted to level up, he would need to collect thousands of materials and craft thousands upon thousands of potions.

_"Even if I could just craft and collect materials from sunrise to dusk for a whole month, it probably still won't be enough to raise my level any higher."_

Much less properly level up, there was a snowball's chance in hell that he could level enough to be able to survive those waves.

To be able to defeat the entire country's military might... he might need to be level 50 or 60 for that! Well, that was if he was alone. If he was properly working together with those other heroes, maybe an average level of 30 or 40 would be enough to deal with the wave. But those other 'heroes' were just civilians given weapons! What could they actually do?

One was a playboy that didn't care for levels — only chasing the skirts closest to him. Nothing else to be said. He also jumped to conclusions fairly quickly without judging the situation at all. He was like an NPC… wait, no. He was worse than an NPC! He was like a bot!

Another was a solo-player who didn't want any companions and would rather do everything alone. In a sense, he was like him, but the problem was that... how could he put it, he was a complete noob. To be able to do solo grinding, one needed a sufficient level of skill to pull off and ample potions to make up for not having a healer in his party. He also needed to ensure he didn't get hit all that often — as DPS classes often didn't have very high defenses.

But he didn't even have basics skills, like — at all. King tested him by asking him basic game-jargon like DPS, kiting, nuking, raid, aggro, simple terms! He barely knows a few of them!

Lastly was some kid that was 17 but looked like a middle-school student. Honestly, he seemed a bit... too nice. He just seemed a little off, in King's eyes. Commonly, in games or manga, such were the hidden enemy to be faced later in the game, but this was just someone else from a different world, so who was he to judge? In any case, he just made him uncomfortable.

King came to this conclusion a long time ago; Either he could run, or he had to deal with the wave alone. Those three 'heroes' just seemed purely unreliable.

_"But at least I can sell some things for money." _Selling raw herbs and those monster parts that he didn't need gained him a hefty sum, and after realizing that he could craft potions with one of his shields, it got him a much more lucrative trade to deal in. As usual, potions, no matter how minor their effects, were worth a high sum.

_"Well, at least I don't have a problem with money. Still, there was one time one of the traders wanted to dupe me with those monster parts yesterday. That was to be expected, I suppose. But I still need to be careful."_

All traders were like that. To buy at a low price and sell it at a high price to any unsuspecting customer. That was also how the stock market worked; though he never really understood how it worked. He didn't need to try investing in the stock market, either.

S-Class pay was... astonishingly high. To put it in simple terms, even though he was just an S-Class hero for almost a year, if he stopped being a hero after just one or two years and left his pay in his bank account... he'd never need to work another day in his life and still have a nice amount to spend every month.

In the mega-cities of his world, everything had a fixed price, and there was no such thing as haggling — unless it was a market stall where one was just buying produce. A price tag was firm and unchangeable, and only existed in games, thus King never really had any experience in real haggling; except in games. Could that knowledge be used here? He wasn't sure.

Nonetheless, he went along with his 'haggling experience', trying to look confident, not offending the man by choosing his words carefully, etc — it was probably a custom to haggle for prices — but thankfully, that pharmacist he sold his potions and herbs didn't really try to haggle the price. Maybe not everyone haggles for everything?

_"I've never really done it before, and that guy probably saw that I was a newbie to the whole haggling thing, and didn't bother with any actual haggling…"_

Of course, the real reason to why the trader didn't dare to haggle with him was completely different from what he thought, but that wasn't important now.

Being supported with S-Class pay, King never really understood the mindset of a 'poor' person. After all, even a job at the local fast-food restaurant was able to keep employees above the poverty line almost everywhere in the world.

One person he could try to understand was Saitama. Whenever he came over to play with him, sometimes he was in a bad mood; and when asked about it, he simply said that he missed a sale.

Granted, King wasn't someone that disliked sales. He's saved maybe over a couple hundred thousand yen in buying anime DVDs and manga on sales and almost everything in his apartment — aside from the furniture that was already in it before he moved in — was bought at a discount.

The only thing he DIDN'T get on discount were the limited-editions of Doki-Doki Sisters. Forget paying below market price, just getting one was hard enough. Some people tried to auction their copies — which worked tremendously and earned them a pretty sum. However, King always got them before they sold out. If there was one thing the universe decided to help him in, it would be finding great manga and games to play.

_"Speaking of Saitama... I remembered offering to borrow him some money if he really needed it. Even if he didn't return it, I wouldn't have minded anyway. Still, he always refused money from me. As cheap as an old man, but I suppose that small bit of pride- or common decency in him prevented him from that."_

In a small way, this world was similar to his old one.

Aside from the pitifully low level of technology and the existence of 'magic', one similarity was the existence of monsters.

Albeit different, his old world's monsters were just humans that mutated due to their negative emotions affecting their body and mind beyond their limits. The world he was in had monsters, but it was better suited to just call them different species.

He was basically an over-glorified exterminator. The heroes of his world were actual, competent heroes. King had no idea what this world had come to, to need to summon completely ordinary civilians to act as 'heroes' for them.

_"This world is different from my old one... I have a 'legendary weapon' stuck to my hand, and I can level up to increase my stats and check them at a moment's notice..." _But even Child Emperor and Metal Knight had already come up with a method to measure combat strength.

They too could create weapons that would be considered 'legendary' in this world. With their scientific prowess, they could invent new weapons that would be no different than actual magical weapons in this world.

After all, missiles, nukes, drones, etc, all of those were probably unthinkable for the denizens of this world. They didn't even have access to any form of advanced weaponry, relying on melee weapons and their 'magic'. Maybe it was their magic that made up for the technology gap, but he'd still choose science over magic any day.

To look at it from his perspective, aside from the fantasy setting, almost everything was the same as his old world! He was made a hero against his will, everyone around him misunderstood his words, and he was known for doing something he didn't do- well, in this case, he was falsely accused.

To make matters worse, his only go-to stress reliever, his anime, games, manga... all of them were gone! The only thing he had left was the bag he brought — which contained the newest games and manga on sale that day he was transported here.

"_Sigh_…" Looking down at his simple and plain meal, he wasn't even hungry anymore; all of this just started to cramp his stomach.

Realizing how much this world resembled his own just made him even more nervous! If everything was going according to what happens in his old world, he should be facing some monster; he'd run away, someone — presumably his savior again — would defeat the monster, and the credit would go to him.

That was not what he needed right now. In fact, his false reputation as 'S-Class Hero King' was the last thing he'd need. Soon, everyone'd count on him to solve a crisis he couldn't solve — again!

Usually, that crisis'd solve itself, but to be honest, he'd rather go home and not deal with this at all. Granted, he's getting stronger, bit by bit — actually stronger felt extremely good!

But really, he'd rather stay in his apartment and play games all day. He wanted to actually become stronger, yeah. But at the risk of dying? No thanks.

_"I just wanna go home…"_

"Hey, you!"

"Hmm?" Turning around, King saw a few figures approaching him, grinning as they walked towards him. They were pretty normal looking, almost like the people of this tavern.

"Yes?"

"You're the Shield Hero, right?"

"Yes. Is there something you want?" King asked, no longer surprised at how people couldn't even call him by his name. Hell, it was as if people could remember name would be a sin in this world.

"Man, for a hero, you sure look lonely! How about we become friends, huh? All the other heroes have companions, why don't we join you?"

"Hmm, I ask you again. Are you sure about this?" Slowly, he cut another piece of meat from his meal, putting it in his mouth with 'deadly calm'.

"Of course we are!" They looked at each other, and King could already tell that something wasn't right with them.

"Then I'll have to ask you a few questions. Do you have proper gear?" He asked first. He wanted to clear up whether they needed equipment or not.

Even if they didn't, it was perfectly fine. He could just buy them some cheap gear and have them level with him until they could afford their own gear. The problem was if they were just aiming to have him pay for their gear and then disappear afterwards. True, this was just a stereotype in video games, but this world was stereotypical enough to warrant King's caution.

"No, we don't!" Almost proudly, they declared, laughing at each other. "You'll have to buy us some."

"Hmm. I suppose that can do." He honestly didn't like it, and something about them didn't feel right, and even so, what could he do? He wasn't confident enough to go asking around for any companions, and with his terrible reputation as 'the Shield Demon' and 'disgusting rapist', he doubted anyone would want to come adventuring with him anyway.

"Great! Now, before we do anything, why don't you come with us?"

"Fine, just let me finish my meal. But still, why do you want go out now? It is already night, and no blacksmith I know open their shops this late at night. If you want to talk about your equipment, we can go tomorrow, instead."

"Just come with us! We want to show you something... don't worry, you won't regret a thing."

One of them got extremely close — a little too close for comfort. He was almost right in King's face, and with that heavy smell of booze, King reckoned this man was probably way too drunk and needed a quiet taxi ride home. Problem was, taxis didn't exist here, and this guy was currently in front of him, and that was a problem.

It was pretty much obvious they wanted something from him, and at this rate, he could see them trying to extort him for some money.

"_Sigh... _I've already said this; If you want to talk about your equipment, we can go in the morning. It is currently night, and I haven't finished my meal." King said calmly, continuing to eat his meal.

"Hey, hey! Don't be so cold... and don't you worry, about our equipment..." The man in the lead pulled out a knife. "Why don't you pay us in advance? We can get our own equipment after..."

"_I was right, after all. They're just planning to extort me." _King expected this. Still, if this was some time ago, he would've been scared witless. Now, he knew that his stats were incredibly high, and could basically shrug off an attack from some of the higher-level monsters, a puny dagger like that would do almost nothing to him.

At times like this, he wished that his infamy as the S-Class Hero King was here, as it would probably deter any sane person from trying to mug him.

Still, with his increased stats, he could probably deal with these guys no problem. After all, he was twice as strong as a bear with his increased stats, and… wait, actually, there was a new problem...

He might accidentally harm them too much, the guards would have a proper excuse to throw him in jail- and he wouldn't have enough time to level up!

...Now, before him was a whole new problem. He needed to ensure that these people didn't get overly harmed, or even die! Even if he could cover it under self-defense, with how unreasonable the people were in this world, they would probably throw him in jail anyway!

"...I suppose you were those kinds of people after all." King said, unmoved by the knife. To be completely honest, he didn't fear the knife in his hands. At this stage, he was just afraid of harming that guy! If this escalated to a physical conflict, King was confident in getting away unscathed — but no matter how this turned out- he would be on the short end — and probably, no, most likely thrown into prison!

The best way to resolve this crisis was to try and settle this peacefully!

"I'll just say this once. You can back away now, and I'll treat it as you did nothing. If you continue... I can't guarantee your safety."

"What did you said!?"

The air tensed up all of a sudden; now, it was especially threatening.

"That's enough! We'll beat you up!"

"Hand over all your money and equipment or die, you bastard!"

A few of them pulled out their daggers, pointing them at King.

"_Dammit! That just made things worse! Still, is no one trying to stop this?! Does the world just hate me?!" _King thought, his mind racing. Never in his life did he think that instead of needing to escape from a monster, he had to deal with hurting someone as little as possible!

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

Thinking about possibly being thrown in prison, all his items being confiscated... Forgive him for being anxious, but he couldn't help it! His stupid heart was just too loud!

"What's that sound?" Many of the tavern patrons raised their head, hearing that strange sound emanate from King. Some were confused, others were gossiping about the Shield Hero getting into a fight with some civilians.

"Hand over your money!" the knife once more pointed at him.

Glancing around for a moment, it seemed that not only the patrons, but the innkeeper himself just turned away his attention rather than trying to help him. True, he didn't really need any help, but some assistance would be appreciated! Actually, no… wasn't this his damn job?!

No matter the time or place, he always managed to get himself into trouble. So much for being the 'Shield Hero'... What was he going to do?!

_"Think, think! How do I always get out of these situations…?"_

He pondered for a moment.

Whenever something like this happened, something else always manages to save him so that he could run away.

Either another hero popped up to defeat the monster- and he could run away, or the monster realizes who he is and surrenders or runs away, or he manages to bluff his way out.

_"The first option is highly unlikely. Even if another one of those 'summoned heroes' appeared in this tavern at this specific time, what'll stop them from turning against me, as well? True, if it was either the Sword or Bow hero, they'd be rather reasonable. But if it's that rash Spear Hero... let's not talk about stopping them, he'd probably attack me himself! He tried to kill me when I was falsely accused, after all!"_

_"The second option is even more unlikely. They've already taken out their daggers, and they know that I'm the Shield Hero. I suppose the third option is my best option..."_

"Leave, while you can…" He lowered his head, his expression darkening. If he couldn't convince them to leave, he had to try and intimidate them. That usually happened without his input anyway, so that was his best bet.

"What do you mean, huh? Scared?"

"Don't you know who I am? I am King, the Shield Hero!"

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

"Wh-what's this sound…" the surrounding people started to freak out, this sound was getting louder and louder! Earlier, it was just a slow, steady rhythm. Now, it was gradually getting stronger and louder, and they could feel the air start to freeze, the temperature dropping... they could even feel the vibrations in the air!

"Just leave. It isn't worth it." His unrelenting expression, his steady pace at which he continued his meal- he was basically showing how unconcerned he was!

"Yo-You think you can scare us?"

King stood up after calmly eating one last bite, sipping his juice, and placed a few coins on the table.

"For the meal…" He said, grabbing his bag and heading towards the exit, not even looking behind his back. It was almost as if he knew with utmost confidence that they weren't going to attack him- or that he knew exactly how they were going to attack him.

"Tch! You cocky bastard! Don't you dare try and ignore us!"

Yet, at that point King already left, leaving the ruffians to their own devices.

"Come on, let's follow him, we will corner him in the alley." One of them stepped forth, just for his friend to place his hand on his shoulder.

"Rock… are you sure?"

"What? Don't say you're scared of him! If it was those other heroes, like the Spear, Sword or Bow Hero, then we'd be fools to fight them, but this is just the damn Shield Hero! He doesn't have anything beside his stupid shield!"

"I-I don't know…" Muttered Rock's companion. "But that man, something doesn't seem right with him." His companions nodded, feeling the ominous air left behind The Strongest Man.

"Yeah, no one's that calm when knives are pointed at them, not even soldiers."

"A-And that weird thumping…" One of them gulped. "When that rhythm started, I felt a strange chill. It was almost like death was coming for us."

All of them nodded, shaken by the experience.

"Tch! Cowards! Just because he's a damn hero!? It doesn't matter. If you guys aren't going to join me, then I'll just do it myself!"

"Rock…" With that, the bandit left his companions behind, going after King to mug him.

...

_"Ah, man! That was cutting it close! Why do I always get into situations like this?"_ King really cursed his 'luck'. No matter what he did, no matter how he tried to lay low, he always got himself into such situations.

His heart is was still pounding; he couldn't believe he got away with such a basic bluff.

"Ah… no matter, at least my bluff worked. On that note, I was seriously worried they would attack me." He muttered, only audible for himself.

"Hey, you there, stop!"

"Shit…" Just when he thought that he got away from them, these bandits followed him. Not to mention, they were currently in a dark alleyway, this was the prime scenario for them to try and mug him!

"What?" He hoped that he didn't need to deal with that stupid situation any more, but as per usual, nothing ever went how he wanted it to. He was probably the unluckiest person in existence.

"Look… how about I pay you and you leave me alone? Is that satisfactory to you?"

The ruffians looked at each other, whispering to each other.

"Tch! After how you humiliated us? No way! Guys, he's mine! Don't you dare interfere! I'll open him up from head to toe!"

"Are you sure, Rock? He's a hero, even attacking one of them is a serious offense." Wait, really? So even if they attacked first, they would be in the wrong? Damn, if he knew about it sooner, he wouldn't have minded them attacking him. Even if he wounded them badly, he would probably still not be in the wrong. It was self-defense, after all!

"It's just a meaningless title, I'll show you guys that even a hero can fall!"

"Are you sure…?" King tried to act, hoping his play will intimidate them enough.

"Yeah, Rock, this guy is quite menacing…" Whispered the other member.

"Shut up! I'll deal with him myself, just watch me!" Grabbing the dagger strapped onto his waist, Rock took a strange stance. "Don't interfere…"

"Rock…"

After gritting his teeth, the bandit started to charge towards King.

"Sure thing Rock…" The other members just sighed, knowing well how hard-headed their leader was.

"_Well, I suppose I can just consider this self defense." _King thought, seeing the slow and sluggish movements of the fellow.

Dodging them with natural ease, this only seemed to infuriate the bandit as he continued swinging the blade without paying heed to his surroundings.

"_Still, I'd rather not try and kill someone if possible, so maybe I could just put on a show of force to intimidate them into surrendering. Also, judging by his attire, he's probably a bandit. I wonder if I could get a reward by turning him in...?"_

Dodging the next swipe, King decided to simply end the farce now.

When the next dagger strike came, King raised his shield to block it, and as expected, the dagger broke due to it's low quality. Not to mention, King's Legendary Weapon was unbreakable. Some random dagger couldn't possibly be able to even scratch the shield, and instead broke due to colliding with said shield. Well, this was probably enough. The bandit no longer had a weapon, and if it came to a physical fight, King was confident this bandit wasn't higher than level 33.

"A-ah..." a piece of shrapnel from the shattered dagger managed to land directly onto the bandit's carotid artery, digging deep enough to pierce the skin...

And a shower of blood spurted out from the vein. The blood pressure of the artery, combined with the increased heart rate from the adrenaline of fighting, the blood seemed to pour non-stop from his opponent's neck, whom collapsed within seconds of the blood flowing from his neck.

_"Oh... shit. Oh shit oh shit oh shit ohshitohshitohshitohshitOHSHIT!"_

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

"Th-that's…"

"Rock!"

"I-I already told him not to do so…"

King looked at the bandit in shock, his face was covered in a crimson red liquid, and in the dark alley, it made him even more menacing. "_No... nonononono!_" King's mind raced. "_I didn't want to kill him at all! Why does this always happen?!"_

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

In the darkness, half covered in blood — the area filled with the roar of the King Engine… All of it aided the hero in looking even more ominous and terrifying for the muggers, urging them to run away, to flee from the terrifying monster they awakened! One could imagine a bloodbath if they stayed any longer!

"Ahhhhh!"

"Run away!"

"He'll kill us all!"

"S-so bloodthirsty!"

King stood ramrod still, paralyzed after realizing that he had basically killed a man.

_"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!"_ King started to panic; his attention snapped back to his attacker. _"Are they just going to leave a dying man alone on the ground?! Hey, come back!"_

He breathed heavily, trying to shout for them to come back. Alas, his mouth couldn't move, he was still stuck where he was, no sound could come out of his mouth!

_"St-Stay calm! Stay calm! Stay calm!"_

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

These people weren't loyal at all! Leaving their dying comrade on the streets next to a stranger? That was some of the most cowardly men he's ever met!

...Well, aside from him. He was likely to do so… much faster than any of them would!

_"I didn't want to kill him in the first place, what the hell was that?!"_ King said to himself inwardly. All he did was put on a show of force to intimidate them into leaving- the last thing he wanted to do was kill someone, yet that was what was going to happen- if he didn't hurry up and save this person!

No, he shouldn't panic. Stay calm! Panic was the worst enemy one could have in serious situations!

"Shit! Why does this always happen to me?" Quickly recovering a cloth bandage from his bag, his brain worked at high speed.

When one wanted to get a driving license, one needed first to complete a first aid exam. Unfortunately, King never finished the practical part of the driving exam- driving a car was just too stressful for him! All the people on the street, the signs and the signals in the car that one needed to pay attention to when using a car? Plus, the monsters that pop up while driving? He didn't need that! He'd rather take the commute and be done with it.

On the other hand, he managed to complete the first-aid part of the exam — with exemplary results!

"Remember! Remember! What do you do when someone's bleeding?"

Judging from the obvious bleeding spurting from the wound, it was arterial bleeding. King couldn't just wrap his neck — that would suffocate him!

_"Yes! Now I remember!" _Tearing a piece of the bandage with sheer strength, King stuffed the wound and covered it with more bandages.

"Ah... I know he's bleeding from the neck, but that's so much blood!" He hated blood. He was disgusted by it. Being covered in it just made things worse! Still, there were times he was covered in worse fluids after a monster attack. Getting home dripping with blood and guts wasn't the best of weekends, but it was most of his weekends.

_"Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! Don't die!_" Upon noticing that the fellow's conditioning was worsening, he recovered the healing potion he bought from the pharmacist — as a safety precaution to be sure that he could recover on the field if he was badly injured.

In truth, he still couldn't craft proper healing potions, just ones that healed minor illness and injuries like minor cuts and abrasions — and this one was not a 'minor' injury, that's for sure! Though it was true that the cut wasn't that deep, the fact that it cut the artery was enough for it to be considered a heavy injury, he'd likely die from shock and or blood loss even if he completely stopped the bleeding.

"Dammit! Work!"

The person that tried to stab him started to tremble; it seemed like his whole body was in shock due to the blood loss! His mouth even started to foam.

"Tsk! So disgusting!"

Nonetheless, King gently pried his mouth open with his shield, pouring the potion in his mouth; he couldn't just give up! He was no saint, and neither did he want to be a hero, but he was at least a decent person- if he could save someone, he would damn well do his best to save them.

"Heal already! The pharmacist said that this could heal wounds almost instantly! Heal!"

He popped open one more potion, stuffing it down his throat, and the shaking stopped, the man losing his consciousness for a moment.

"I-Is he alive?"

"AHHHHHHH!"

"AHHHHHHH!" King shouted back in response to Rock's sudden shout, the mugger jumped up, and then collapsing again right away. It seemed as though the shock of being 'resurrected' like this was too much for the poor man.

_"Wha-What the fuck was that!?" _King thought, not knowing what the hell that was about. He tried his best to save him, and he seemingly did. But what the hell was that at the end, though?

"Looks like you're facing quite a predicament here."

"Hmm?" King turned his head towards the source of the sound, his senses heightened in response to the unknown voice, and a man stepped out from the shadow of the alley, revealing a strange rotund man wearing a ring-master's outfit.

_"A... ring-master?"_ Suddenly his mind flashed to the one manga he read before about a ring-master that collected souls — this was strangely reminding him about that one manga!

This world got stranger and stranger with every passing moment, and with that- scarier!

First, muggers, then a ring-master appeared out of nowhere? If this wasn't a cliche anime plot, then he didn't know what was.

"Who are you?"

Looking at the man before him, wearing his strange ring-master costume and those large glasses...

Paired with his feathered cape and top-hat, it would be a complete lie to say that he didn't look suspicious at all!

"Hmm…" the 'ringmaster' walked towards King, inspecting the unconscious mugger, placing his two fingers on his neck.

"Still alive... you actually managed to save him even though he was bleeding that much without magic..." The ringmaster then laid eyes on both potion bottles on the floor, and smiled. "So you used those high-quality potions, eh? Those would cost quite a lot, surely it wasn't worth it to save one measly mugger that tried to steal from you, no less. You're quite the merciful one, aren't you?"

This strange little man offered a toothy grin to King, clapping his hands. It did nothing to lessen his fear… hell, it added to his apparent creepiness!

"Nice work. Well done! Well done…"

"You still haven't answered me. Who are you?" King stood up, trying to look tough, making sure to reveal no outward fear, in truth, he was too paralyzed by the recent happenings.

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

"Now, now! You need not be violent."

_"Who wants to be violent, you just scared me!" _King deadpanned in his mind. Who in the world wouldn't be nervous after a strange man pops out of nowhere to inspect an unconscious person beside you? That wasn't normal! In fact, nothing in this world was normal, he took it back, he wanted to go home!

"I'm just a humble trader, walking around here on this beautiful night. Great sir, you seem to be in dire need, may I help you with this 'little' problem?" the trader leaned against his staff, despite the bloodied alley, still grinning.

"Well…"

Looking to his side, it couldn't be denied. King needed to do something. He couldn't just leave a half-dead person here in an alleyway.

He was the least worthy person to be a hero. Comparing himself to people like Saitama, Bang, Atomic Samurai, Genos... even those C-Class heroes were better heroes than him! But even then, he wasn't a horrible person. He caused this person to almost die, he'd deal with the aftermath properly.

"Yes, I wouldn't mind some help."

"I see… I see. Hmm, what to do?" The short man stroked his chin. "I can help you, as I have my business stationed not far from here. Of course, only if you have the coin to pay for his proper healing." The fat man rubbed his fingers together, expecting compensation.

_"That's my luck…" _King sighed, but what did he expect? People were greedy beings; of course they'd hope for compensation for anything they do. Even heroes of the association do not work for free.

If one cut the pay of all the heroes completely, he could say with confidence that a lot of the heroes would quit. He wouldn't say all of them, as he knew a few people that would earnestly help people as heroes with or without pay, but a good majority of people would quit.

Now, he wasn't saying the majority of heroes weren't earnest — there were quite a lot of heroes that were willing to risk life and limb to save others. But without the pay from the Heroes Association, it simply wasn't realistic to be able to support their heroic duties. The pay of the Heroes Association wasn't just an incentive for heroes to work harder — it was also support for heroes to do their work without needing to worry about their financial situation.

Still, though he didn't have access to his money right now, and nor did he have the true will to save people as a hero, he needed to do something.

"I am willing to pay for his recuperation, but I ask for only one thing..." King wanted to clear something up before he did anything with this shady character.

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

Looking at King from his angle with that bloodied face in the dark, King looked utterly terrifying! Even for the usually calm-and-collected trader, he couldn't help but start to fear for his life.

"Y-Yes… and what that would be?"

"Honesty. Don't try to deceive me."

"R-Right. That can be arranged." The trader adjusted his tie, nervous being around this man. The news circulating about him was not without a foundation; he was indeed an intimidating man.

"First, you will heal him. Only then will I pay for his healing."

"Naturally…" Nodded the short man, already fearing for what might happen if he denied this request.

"Well then!" The man cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure and twisted his staff in the air stylishly to re-establish his lost confidence. "Grab him and follow me. My business is not that far from here..."

King just sighed. Great! Now he had to carry around a bloodied, half-dead man. Just what he needed tonight.


	4. The Meaning of Hero (part 2)

**Written by Oblivon2991**

**Proofread: The usual drunken gang of misfits and TranscendedPotato**

**Thank you for reading my fanfiction and for giving me a chance.**

**My mother tongue isn't English, so please be patient about the grammatical issues.**

**I don't own One Punch Man anime/manga/webcomic, it belongs to ONE.**

**I don't own The Rising of the Shield Hero (Japanese: ****盾の勇者の成り上がり****, Hepburn: Tate no Y****ū****sha no Nariagari), it is written by Aneko Yusagi.**

**If you have anything to add or have questions, or remark, please review, or send a PM.**

**Thank you!**

**Now let's start the story!**

**(So, this is the proofread version of the same chapter, I cut the actual chapter two because honestly, it grew to be 25k word+! Hopefully, it is more digestible. Who read it before, only the way of meeting Raph will changes slightly, nothing drastic)**

* * *

**Chapter 4: The Meaning of Hero (Part 1)**

* * *

"So, how far away is it again?"

"Not that far, I assure you. We'll be there soon."

He said the same thing a minute ago, but it didn't seem like he was getting any nearer. King was starting to think that this person was just trying to lure him into an even darker corridor so that a bunch of his thugs could come and kill him.

Usually, he'd fear for his life. But after re-thinking that his stats are much higher than the average person, he became more confident. That didn't mean he was any less cautious, though. The last thing he needed was to die here without knowing what happened due to his overconfidence.

Still, as much as the trader wanted to sound trustworthy, it was hard to do so after following said trader down some dark alleyways. If it was a normal day, he wouldn't have gone down here at all! He'd much rather be grinding for more levels.

Being under-prepared for a wave that crippled an entire kingdom's military? Well, sorry for being so over-vigilant in ensuring he was leveling enough, his current efforts could put even his prior efforts in a game to shame. The things one could do when their life was on the line was astonishing.

_"Honestly, I don't like this, I don't like this at all! Why did this person have to go and attack me?! I'd leave him on the ground, seeing as I already did proper first-aid, but in this world where modern medicine doesn't exist? I may as well kill him myself to save him the troubles of infection!"_

_"And what's with the way this fellow walked? It's so creepy!" _King wasn't always a big complainer, but those steps of his were big enough to be called skips.

"So, what does your business deal in, anyway?" King had to ask. As they arrived by the trader's circus-tent, King had a sneaking suspicion on what this place dealt in. Though this was some medieval-fantasy-esque place, he had to hope that his guesses were wrong.

Further going down a long, dark hallway, King could see some cages, and those cages were filled with glowing eyes, filled with what he could speculate were beasts or humans — Some looked like a combination of both, and most looks miserable and broken, clothed in rags, their living conditions squalid. He could see them in cages and nothing else with them aside from food and water to keep them alive. There wasn't even some bedding for them!

Of course, his assumptions were correct.

"Slaves, Dear Shield Hero. Slaves." The man announced proudly, smirking constantly.

_"Wait, how does he know that I'm the Shield Hero?" _Wait, that was a stupid question. Of course he'd recognize him immediately. By that stupid Legendary Shield that was stuck to him since the first day he was summoned.

Of all things, why was he the shield-user?! All the other heroes could keep their 'legendary weapons' in more convenient forms, why didn't his have that function?!

_"I already suspect my arm is molding underneath…" _In a world like this where all the modern comforts of his old world were nowhere to be found, and the cleanliness of this world was downright horrible, it would be a miracle for his arm to not be infected by yeast or the like, unless his shield magically made it so that the area underneath his arm would not sweat. Otherwise, the second the shield gets removed from him, his arm was bound to be molding, or at least smell horrible!

Only the blind won't be able to spot the shield stuck to him 24/7, so unless they thought he was some sort of shield-fetishist, it would be pretty obvious that he was the Shield Hero!

"Slaves?" Then, what the trader said came to his attention.

"Yes, or you call them companion substitutes, living wares, whatever you like."

Well, he had his assumptions but it was confirmed! This country had its own dark side as well. Then again, so did his world.

In his world, there were monsters, villains, and other similar things. Here, there were bandits, monsters, and slaves.

Yet, his surprise was only really mild, as in a fantasy setting, it was not rare that there were slaves. Hell, in some games, he even bought some to serve as hard laborers or fodder. At least his reason for that was that for one, the lore stated that they were criminal slaves that were meant for the guillotine anyway, so at least as slaves they could be useful. Secondly, they were cheaper.

_"Still, that was only a game…" _But now, witnessing so many slaves, he felt slightly sorry for them. After all, it wasn't confirmed that they were all criminals or evil-doers. There were probably some innocents in between them.

"I see…"

"Hmm, you don't seem very surprised."

"Just disappointed." He muttered. "Not unexpected, just slightly disappointing."

"Hmm, you don't like slaves, Shield Hero?"

"It's not the best way to keep living beings…" King only said this much, and that was more than enough.

Even if he wanted to free these slaves, what was he do to? It would be stupid to assume that his fellow didn't have security. Even if he tried and succeeded, he was sure that some of these slaves deserved being here, and if he freed them, what was to say they wouldn't stab him in the back the moment their freedom was ensured?

On a second note, he wasn't some champion of justice. He was a coward with no alignment to sacrifice himself for others — whether he was called a hero or not. He tried to be a decent person, that was all he could say.

To consider him a hero... was going too far. If he could save someone from dying, he'd do that. But if attempting to do so would risk his life? He'd run away faster than an otaku/NEET running away from responsibility.

"Hmm, I see that you have your own opinions about slavery. But hear me out; a slave will never betray you. They obey your orders without question. They do not slack, and will complete your orders as best they can. Not like that gentlemen who only tried to extort you, and not like the person who accused you of rape. Slaves are perfect underlings, both competent and loyal."

"So, you've been watching me?" King asked. Yeah, he had a creepy feeling someone was watching him since he came to this world — in truth, when in the open, King always had such a hunch. He can't help it; his fame came with such premonition.

"Hmm, can you blame a man for his curiosity? Let's just say that a few little birds told me some interesting things about you, and that's it. I wanted to witness the infamous Shield Hero who demolished a large part of the forest only with a single strike of his fist, waking the whole country from its slumber."

"I see…" King still had no idea what the hell those people were referring to.

The only thing he could remember was that after he was cornered by some trees, he just punched forward in desperation, closing his eyes, hoping that someone would save him. The moment he opened his eyes, the entire section of the forest in front of him was completely devastated, as if Saitama had appeared in the very last moment to save him, only to disappear the next. To think that it was he who destroyed it? Well, if it wasn't so absurd, he'd laugh it off like some sort of bad joke.

Sadly, that 'bad joke' was his entire week since arriving here, and it didn't seem to be stopping any time soon.

"And well…"

"What is it?" King raised his brow.

"There was a customer who wanted to enslave the Shield Hero. But, well... witnessing your prowess first hand, it would be a greater hassle than it's worth, not to mention the impossibility of the task. None of the people I can hire are even close to being able to match you in combat anyway."

"... To enslave me, you say?" King couldn't help but tremble, his 'King Engine' activating immediately.

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

"Ah! That sound! Rumors says it is your bloodlust increasing. Truly intimidating, truly. But I understand, I, too, would be upset if someone wanted to enslave me. You have every right to be angry."

_"What do you mean by bloodlust?" _He wanted to ask, but as always, the little man cut his words out with his sweet, honeyed words.

"I thought, why not approach the Shield Hero with an offer of my own? He seems like a promising customer…" The short man chuckled.

"Are you saying I should buy a slave? Aren't you afraid I might attack you? I am the Shield Hero…" King tried to be convincing, but he did not feel confident at all!

"Why not? What could you possibly lose? In this country, slavery isn't against the law. And as I said, nothing is forced, if you don't like my wares, you can simply leave." The man shrugged, as always, smirking.

"Hmm…" King just hummed, having nothing else to say.

"This way…"

Leading him forth, soon, they reached a more spacious area — it was most likely the middle of that huge circus tent.

Before them, the slave trader opened a massive gate. The interior was much like outside; dimly lit, with a necrotic odor hung in the air.

_"What a strong odor… how can someone live like this! I want to vomit!" _It took all of his willpower to suffocate his urge to expel the half-digested contents of his stomach, already paling.

"Upset?" The trader looked back at King. "I understand. All the summoned heroes always frown upon slavery, until they learn how convenient it is to use slaves."

"…" King didn't answer, he felt as though if he opened his mouth for even a second, he'd immediately retch everything he ate, including the jerky he ate in the afternoon while he was farming.

Seeing this, the slaver hummed, leading him to a table.

"Put him there…" It was to be expected, despite carrying a fully-grown man for who knows how long, he didn't feel tired at all. He already experienced his increased physical strength when he managed to knock the lights out of a monster attacking him with an accidental shield bash, but his increased stats were really convenient.

Putting the still-unconscious man on the table, the pudgy man raised his open palm, starting his chant.

[On my authority as the Great Slave Merchant Beloukas, I order thee, decipher the laws of nature and appraise my target to reveal its true nature, All Zveit Appraisal!]

Immediately, the slaver's hand started to glow, and so did the man on the table.

King watched the event with some neutrality; he had already seen the pharmacist do the same procedure before to appraise the herbs and potions he sold.

_"It seems as though the chant is different for everyone…" _Watching the event happen again, he wondered if he could also use magic or not.

He definitely had a magic stat! That meant he too should be capable of using it. The question was… what chant should he use?

_"I need to come up with a cool one." _Even if he himself was the furthest thing from 'cool', at least his chant should sound cool.

Fortunately, he already had a few ideas. Well, that was if magic needed chants. If he could cast magic without chants, that was better. It'd save him some time. Also, if it turned out that his chant was lame, it'd save him the humiliation. Remembering the chuunibyous back in his high-school... yeah, he definitely didn't want to seem like one of them.

"Hmm, it seems as though his dagger was heavily rusted, thus causing sepsis. Not to mention, he seemed to have poisoned it some time ago, as there are traces of poison on the dagger that hadn't dried yet. It's a rather popular one, as well. It's cheap and requires either a high-class potion or a healer to get rid of it. Still, this would be rather expensive for a common mugger, so he is probably one of the more influential muggers in town, or maybe a member of a gang."

_"Just my luck…" _Yeah, he went toe to toe with basically the only mugger in the town that used poison, and there was a chance that he came from a gang. _"I'm definitely cursed; there's no way in hell this kind of misfortune would befall any normal person…"_

First, he transported to a different world, and then accused of rape by the only person that was willing to join him. Now this…? King didn't want to know what would come next.

"Hmm, this may need some antidote, the potion you used, albeit a strong one, was not made to heal this specific poison. Even though it's just remnants of the poison, if not removed would cause a painful infection. And for this man, he should've died, as the poison directly entered his blood-stream and straight to his head. Fortunately for you and this gentleman, I have a few bottles of the antidote on hand. If you excuse me for a moment…"

The man left for a moment, entering the smaller tent that was most likely his office. Judging from the light coming from that place and the lack of smell emanating from the tent, King came to that conclusion.

_"I mean, it has to be, I can't think of any other reason that specific tent would have lights and have less smell…"_

Looking at the man on the table, he still showed symptoms of a high fever, the cut on his neck started to swell, and despite the expensive healing potions he used on him, it seemed as though his condition was slowly worsening. He would definitely die if he was just left like this.

"That dagger looked pretty rusty." Looking at the man, not just his neck, parts of his body seemed to be affected, as well. From the swollen cut, purple veins could be seen extending from the cut, almost covering the entire top half of his body. Just what kind of poison did he use?! Not to mention, it was just remnants of the poison, wasn't it?! If it managed to hit him... King didn't know if even he would be able to walk that off.

Unbeknownst to him, due to the massive amount of shield passive effects stacking onto him, King was long since immune to lesser and mediocre poisons. Only the higher-grade poisons would be able to affect him in the first place.

"Here we are…" Emerging from the smaller tent, Beloukas brought two bottles along with him, first pouring the one with green liquid into the man's mouth, waiting for a moment before pouring the reddish potion that made Rock glow up. His fever went down almost right away, a relieved expression visible on his face. The purple veins started to disappear, as well.

"Is he…?"

"He will be fine for now. But his body is exhausted by the poison; it may take a few days for him to wake up. It might even take a month to fully recover from the effects."

"I see… how much I owe you?"

"A gold will do, great customer…"

"A… gold?" King almost gasped. That totaled to 100 silver! "Are you trying to extort me?"

"Of course not, I wouldn't dare after what I heard from you and witnessed what happened in that alley. It is just that the potions and the antidote I used aren't cheap. As I heard, you're also an expert of herbs and potions. I wouldn't dare to try con you. It wouldn't work anyway."

"Me? An expert?" King blinked. "Why do you think that?"

"Hmm, recently, the price of certain herbs and potions dropped. At the same time, a certain Shield Hero was also seen around the shop of the local pharmacist- and quite often, I might say. Coincidence? I don't think so. Even if you got hurt every day, I doubt that you'd need to visit the pharmacist so often anyway — unless you were selling large quantities of herbs and potions." Beloukas started to twirl his mustache, making him even creepier.

King needs to be a lot more observant after all. It seems as though this creepy little dude was watching his every step.

_"Is he a pervert or what!?" _With that mustache and creepy outfit, he definitely looked like a figure who'd chat with little girls under a fake profile.

"…"

"So, can I interest you with a few of my wares?"

"I suppose I can check them out…"

This little man was just weird; King had a bad feeling that this man was hiding something from him, even being near him made him uncomfortable.

_"He just made me remember that creepy ringmaster from that manga!" _But still, he could just check out the slaves he was offering. Not like he had anything to lose; he could just walk out of here if nothing interested him.

He still needed a companion, or he wouldn't be able to proceed normally. Unfortunately — or perhaps fortunately, until now, no one wanted to join him.

_"Except for those muggers…" _But the only thing they wanted was to mug him, so that didn't count. They didn't plan on following him in the first place.

"Follow me…" Beloukas grinned, leading him further down the rows and rows of cages.

"Sure…"

King felt moment by moment, his creepiness meter was increasing. And when it reaches the max… he'd probably leave as soon as possible. There was a limit to how creepy someone could be, you know!

...

After a few twists and turns, they approached a rather large cage, a pair of dangerously glowing eyes immediately lighting up as they approached.

"Now; this is my recommendation to you." The short man pointed his cane at the beast inside.

**"Grrr! Grah!"** The creature lashed out, almost reaching King's face.

_"T-That almost hit me!"_

The suddenness of the event shocking him, the King engine flared! The Strongest Man could only do one thing! One instinctual thing that unbeknownst to him had saved his life numerous times!

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

"GRAHHHHHHHHH!" King released his mighty battle cry! A shout of strength and rage! Malice and terror! Bloodlust and death!

An expression that others might even consider threatening or downright terrifying was frozen on his face, his terrible voice echoed throughout the whole tent, making even the most courageous beasts fearful!

Immediately, the creatures around him became uneasy, hearing the unknown, beating sound, hearing the echoing cry of 'rage'! And soon, the whole establishment was filled with the beastly moans of terrified slaves!

The creature inside the big cage watched King with confused, then started to shudder, retreating to the farthest section of the cage, whimpering like a little puppy.

"Huh…" King finally stopped his 'battle-cry', still shocked, but relieved after checking himself one last time.

_"Calm down! Calm down! You're perfectly safe! It can't hurt you from inside the cage!" _King tried to calm himself, but it was easier said than done.

"Oh my! How strange…" Caressing his chin, the merchant snapped his fingers.

"**Gauhhh**!"

The cages around them started to light up, the moans and whimpers quieting immediately.

"...What was that? Do they usually act like this?"

"That was their Slave Crest, a seal etched on them to keep them in control. After all, it would be dangerous if they could rebel against their masters. This makes it much easier to control them, doesn't it?"

_"And they wanted to put something like that on me…!?" _As usual, his existence was cursed with bad luck. Still, didn't he read that his Legendary Weapon protected against slave seals and control-type curses or something?

"As for your prior question, no, they usually don't act like this. They used to be calm and silent; I made sure to break them properly. It seems that your bloodlust is affecting them, Shield Hero. I request that you do not upset my wares. It will bring no good if they break out from their cages in a frenzy."

_"Easier said than done!" _King was more scared than the creatures around him. Hell! If he wasn't rooted to the ground, he would have already run away; his creep meter already reached the maximum.

"I do my best to hold back…" He urged himself to calm down to reduce his heartbeat, but it was not that easy. He couldn't control his heartbeat!

"By the way, what are these things...? They look human, yet not." He already suspected the answer, but he wanted confirmation.

"Beastmen, of course…"

"Beastmen?"

"Yes, though many may call them demi-humans instead. They are classified as intelligent humanoids. More or less…"

"More or less?" King raised a brow.

"I suppose the rumors were true, the Shield Hero is not well versed in how things work here. Very well, let me explain." Beloukas pointed his cane at the still whimpering werewolf. "The Melromarc Kingdom has a human superiority custom, which makes it a difficult place for demi-humans and beastmen to reside in."

"Huh…" At least he found one positive thing in his current existence; that he was human, meaning he wouldn't face too much discrimination... well, he was already discriminated against a lot due to his false reputation as a rapist, but that was because of a false accusation.

Speaking of that, why did the King look overly disgusted at that? True, the accusation of rape was a heavy one, but he was so angered and disgusted it seemed as though he raped his own daughter.

"I assume there is a difference between demi-humans and beastmen."

"It is as you say… demi-humans closely resemble humans while having non-human traits and features, like their ears and tails, and some demi-humans like lizardmen have scaly skin. Beastmen are even less human compared to them, oh yes."

Looking towards the werewolf, it simply whimpered in response to King's glare, turning away from him. It seems that King had completely and utterly scared the werewolf into submission.

"So, does this one interest you, Shield Hero? I assure you, I can offer him for a great price."

"I don't think he's in any shape to fight…" King said, looking at the werewolf, which simply whimpered in response.

"Hmm, you're right. A battle slave that can't even fight properly is a useless slave. It seems like your battle-intent has scared him into submission. Regardless, nothing the slave crest can't solve." And again, the man snapped his fingers, and the werewolf cried aloud, standing up, still trembling. The crest on its chest glowed brightly, as it took forced steps towards King.

"It is unnecessary to hurt him. I get your point."

For a moment, the werewolf stopped trembling, looking at King curiously. The fact that a stranger, someone that was browsing for a slave no less, showing compassion to him? One could say that pity and remorse were foreign concepts to him, yet this fierce-looking man that intimidated him had showed him those values.

"Hmm, don't say you're pitying him."

"Even if that's the case, what does it matter to you?"

"I suppose it does not." shrugged Beloukas. "He costs 15 gold, by the way. I assure you, he's a quality product."

King mentally jumped. Even if his current money was doubled, he would go bankrupt after spending 15 gold.

"You know I don't have that kind of money, and despite that, you show me this slave."

"Of course, great customer! My eyes rarely deceive me! You see, I believe that one day, you will become a prominent person. A person that I want to make a connection with as early as possible. After all, we can't have some other incompetent traders selling you inferior goods for a higher price, right?"

"I suppose you are…"

"This is the status of the slave for reference." Showing King a small crystal; it displayed the werewolf's stats.

[Battle Slave: LV 75]

[Species: Werewolf]

_"Holy shit! That's more than twice my level!"_

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

King was disturbed; there was no way he could control such a thing! Wait, it was true that the 'slave crest' on it will allow him to control it better, but at such a high level, King would be surprised if it couldn't just kill him before he tried any 'commands'!

"I see you're excited. Don't worry, if you were to buy it, you can lift it's restrictions and spar with it as much as you like."

_"Who the hell is excited!? Spar with it? Unless I'M the one with twice its level, there's no way in hell I'm sparring with it! I'd probably die even if it was holding back!"_

"A little bit of info about this product. It had previously been fighting at the Coliseum. I picked it up when it was discarded due to its broken arms and legs."

"So you want to sell me a broken product?" King questioned. True, it had broken arms and legs, so it obviously wouldn't be as much as a threat, but with that high a level, King wouldn't be surprised if it could still overwhelm him instantly. He was less than half the werewolf's level, after all!

"Don't misunderstand, it's not as I want to con you. It is still under the market price."

"Most likely…"

"Now then! As you have already seen our best product, what kind of slave is to your liking?"

"Hmm… I think I will browse some of the cheaper slaves. My budget isn't exactly high at the moment." King said, yet, all he could think of is to get away from here, without becoming suspicious or losing face if possible.

"I see... It makes sense, I suppose. You need to be able to afford a room in an inn and some equipment for the slave you're buying, so spending too much is unwise. You're a smart customer, Sir Shield Hero." The slave merchant grinned creepily, which only unnerved King. "Follow me, then. I'll bring you to see some of the cheaper wares."

King followed the slaver merchant down the rows of cages of the cheaper slaves. The more expensive slaves were at least healthy, looking at the cheaper slaves, they looked malnourished at best, and half-dead at worst. The further they went, the smell of death was heavier, and King could see stains of dried vomit, blood, and pee everywhere he looked.

How someone could even live in such squalid conditions? King didn't know. Half of the slaves here either had an arm or leg missing, a horrible infection, or both.

"Well, these are the cheapest of the cheapest. Some of these slaves could be bought for just ten silvers. Though of course, finding any slave at that price that doesn't have a disease, all their arms and legs, and any time left to live in the first place is rarer than finding a gold coin on the street." Beloukas remarked. "We shouldn't dally here longer. Do you have any suggestions?"

"...Not really. All I ask is that they have all their arms and legs attached, and don't have any strange disease that cannot be cured." King said. _"Slaves that don't even have all arms and legs?! Horrible infections?! That's more than just a crime against humanity in my old world, that's a hazard for people in general! What kind of sick fuck-"_

"Hmm... we don't really have a lot of slaves that fulfill those conditions here. Shall we go to view the normal products? I can assume you none of them have any diseases or physical maladies." The slave merchant suggested.

"Okay then, let's go-" King wanted to move away as quickly as possible. This place was creepy as all hell! So many tormented slaves here... almost a quarter of all the cages were just corpses! King didn't want to stay here any longer, opting to stay as far away from here as possible.

But due to his incredible want to leave this place as soon as possible, King accidentally stepped on a puddle of piss that hadn't dried yet without noticing, and due to moving too quickly…

***CRASH***

…He slipped and fell, crashing into a cage before him, right away breaking the bars on it.

"Huh?" he can only blink, it was strange, yet he felt nothing when his face collided with the cage.

"Ah… AHHHH!" His attention snapped, hearing the sudden scream coming from before him, followed by frantic movements and a clamor against the furthest part of the cage. Looking up to see who he disturbed-

"…Are you joking with me?" A little girl around the age of ten was in the cage, a demi-human with a strange fat tail and round ears, almost completely skin and bone. She was heavily malnourished, that was for sure.

She was in bad shape, wearing nothing more than rags. On her face was a terrified expression, mixing both terror and desperation, tears flowing from her eyes. Her entire body was trembling uncontrollably, and slowly, a puddle of liquid gathered under her nether regions. Just by looking at her, King felt endless pity for the child in front of him, and for some reason, an unknown feeling rose in his chest.

"Ahh… Ahhh!" She was terrified, backing away to the back of the cage as she spotted King's bloodied face in the dark, however with another snap of the fingers from her master, her whimper ceased.

"Ahhhh!" replaced by a painful cry.

King slowly emerged from the cage, disturbed, dusting himself.

"What was this?"

"Ah, yes, I remember her. She arrived in quite bad shape. A problematic child indeed." Pondered Beloukas, not even caring that his 'ware' was on the verge of dying. A scared child who only wanted to get away. "Speaking of which, you accidentally broke a cage of mine, but no worries, I won't be charging you for that. It was my fault for not cleaning up this place, anyway."

"...You keep kids here?" King was horrified! How could a human be so cruel!?

"What? Don't you say you are pitying them? As I've said, they are just slaves. I care not for how they became slaves, but to me, they are nothing more than 'objects' to be sold for a profit."

"…" King remained silent, horrified by the cruelty of the man.

"Well, I'd better put her somewhere else. I have much better products to show you." Beloukas moved to grab the girl in the cage, leading her to who knows where. The girl seemed to resist, but with the commands of the 'slave seal', it lit up and followed by a cry, she obediently followed her master.

King was frozen, not only by the cruelty of the man but a small chill up his spine, thinking that someone wanted to have him a slave, like this poor girl over here!

No, just looking at the broken thing that was the girl made him remember himself! All his fears! All the trauma he ever experienced!

He... he just... not just as the 'Shield Hero', not just as the 'S-Class Hero King', but as a decent person, he could not allow something like this to happen!

_"What would a hero do? What would Saitama do?"_

He tried to come up with a solution, recalling his first meeting with his friend and savior.

**Flashback:**

_"Are you alright? Is your eye okay? Try opening it slowly."_

_"Who-Who are you?" Looking up, before him, a bloodied man stood, heavily wounded after a fierce battle._

_"Me? I'm just a hero for fun. If you see a hero rising, that'd probably be me."_

_"Y-you're hurt!"_

_"What, this? This is nothing." _

_"…"_

_"Heh, today was a great victory!" His smile was bright, filling King with peace and calm- a calm knowing that he was now safe._

**Flashback End:**

King remembered it all too well, his first meeting with Saitama. His bloodied appearance — still with hair — engraved in his mind. Granted, at the time, he didn't know who he was, but the point was that it was something he could try!

"Wait…!"

He placed his hand on the shoulder of the trader, making him turn around.

"Hmm…? Ugh!" Towering above him in the dark, King's bloodied appearance filled Beloukas with a foreign feeling — oh wait, he recognized it. It was a feeling that he had long since lost.

_Dread._

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

"Stop for a moment, I'll inspect her."

"Hmm? So you pity her? She will be a hindrance to you in the long run, you know?"

"I don't care." King walked before the still trembling little girl, getting on one knee to get closer to her. She just sat on the ground, her eyes filled with dread, all her body trembling.

"Are you alright? What's your name…?"

"…" The girl simply whimpered, not daring to say a word. Beloukas was about to raise his hand and give the order, but King's 'death stare' was enough of a message to him.

"No." King's single word was more effective than the commands of a slave master, Beloukas's hand immediately stopped in its place.

"It's fine; I won't hurt you. I am King. Do you want to leave this place?"

"…" The girl stopped trembling for a moment, looking away.

"I've decided. I'll take her."

"Hmm, she's not really the best choice. But according to my information, you like obedient girls more..."

"Those rumors are unfounded…" Whatever he meant, King was sure it was nothing flattering.

"I see, I suppose that part of the rumor didn't match up. The rest however was definitely accurate."

"…" King's glare was profound, piercing even, making even the calm slaver clear his throat in embarrassment.

"This way, I keep a dagger in my office. We can get your blood out that way. We'll only need a drop."

"Why do we need my blood?" King asked, getting nervous.

"Now, now! It's nothing sinister. We just need to reprogram her seal so it will activate at your command, and not mine. Of course, you can change the trigger if you want."

"Is that really necessary?" King questioned, looking at the already suffering girl. She looked back at him, her eyes filled with hopelessness.

"What? Don't say you want to free her… Pft!" Beloukas released an amused chuckle.

King was not a hero. His life wasn't even decent — all day, every day stuck in his apartment playing his games and watching anime. If the people knew of his true self, they wouldn't even call him a decent person — much less give him the title of 'The Strongest Man On Earth'.

But now? Now was his chance. A chance to save someone. A chance to change her life for the better.

He was aware that he couldn't save everyone — heck, no one could. Not even Saitama. Even he couldn't be everywhere at once. But what he could do was save this little girl from the horrible fate of being abandoned and discarded— a girl who reminded him of himself— an ordinary person who was alone in the world of monsters, at the wrong place, at the wrong time.

It may not have been the wisest nor best decision, but he was certain that if he didn't save her right now, he would definitely regret it down the line. After all, he could definitely afford her! There was no way a small girl like her would be valued a lot by the slavers — as horrible as it sounded, it was beneficial to King, at least. He didn't need to bleed himself dry to save her.

"Yes, I want to free her…"

"…" Her eyes lit up for a moment upon hearing him, looking up at the previously scary man. Now, within her vision, King looked different from the scary monster she visualized him as earlier.

"Your choice, but you know, she's only level 1. She'll be a hindrance to you- urk!"

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

The King Engine beat vigorously as King stared at Beloukas, almost like he was staring straight into his soul.

"I don't recall that being any of your concern. And that will be... my problem." King looked down at the little girl. "So, how much does she cost?"

"20 silver coins for her. Another five silver for the cost of the removal of the seal..."

"I'll get her." Though it wasn't really much for him, the thought that he saved this small girl from her probably gruesome fate was in a word, relieving. It was like when he managed to buy the very last limited-edition Doki-Doki Sisters copy in the store.

Was this how heroes always felt when they saved lives? Honestly, he had no idea. If it was, then he could understand why they would want to save people so often.

"Very well, in that case, please follow me. We'll seal the deal and remove her slave brand."

"Hey."

"Huh?" The girl looked up to him; her expression still blank.

"Do you want to hold my hand? It's scary here, isn't it?"

The girl gulped, still wary of him, but accepting King's hand, nodding as the two of them followed her previous master.

After they removed the brand, King handed the money that was agreed on — twenty silver, plus one more gold for saving that other man.

He spent a great deal of money here; he honestly hoped he would not regret it later. But still, the money was for saving two lives. One was some mugger that attacked him — so it wasn't really reasonable to save him — but another was a little girl that he would definitely not regret saving. Even if he were to die from the waves, it was a comforting thought that he at least managed to save one life.

"See you again, great customer. We'll be looking forward to your next visit."

"Sure…" King just muttered, leaving behind the creepy little man and his dark establishment.

"Hmm, interesting choice. I am looking forward to your future accomplishments, dear Shield Hero." Beloukas said to himself once the Shield Hero was out of sight.

…

King and the girl walked through the dark streets, holding each other hands, as the girl just watched him, still unable to process what really happened. She expected to have been a slave again, but right now, she was free! She could run away right now and he couldn't command her to stop running. Yet something stopped her from doing so. Perhaps it was his strong grip? Or was it just the feeling of safety from being around this man?

'Cough! Cough! Cough!'

"Hmm, let's find an inn for now. I'll get you some clothes and gear tomorrow…"

King really hoped he could handle what was coming because one thing was for sure.

_"What will I do with a kid? I'm so stupid, not thinking about this beforehand. Man, I'm so strained and tired!"_

Now, he had to take care of her, AND prepare for and survive the waves, then find a way back home. Also, what was he going to do about her when he does leave eventually? He wanted to go home as soon as possible, but to raise a child until she could take care of herself... King REALLY didn't want to spend a few years in this nightmare of a new world.

The difficulty scale just raised a hundred times, and it was not the good kind of difficulty!

_"Man… this is so annoying. I just want to quit already."_

**Scene Change: Next Morning:**

_"I am so tired… I couldn't sleep all night."_ Under King's eyes, deep circles were visible. Because of the girl coughing all night, he could barely sleep, this leading to his current appearance.

_"Man, how they look at me right now is getting worse…"_

He was already aware of the false rape charges Aultcray started to circulate about him. However, he was still clueless about why people looked at him with a lot more disgust and fear than yesterday.

It wasn't only because he was 'King'. It was because of the dried blood on his face and his chainmail still there from last night. A ragged demi-human walking with him was only the topping on the already messed up 'cake'.

King was too tired last night to take a bath after finding an inn, he rented a room with two beds, and went to sleep right away — at least trying to, but the girl's coughing woke him up in the middle of the night more times than he could count.

He didn't even recognize the flabbergasted and scared stares of the people around — and the quivering tone of the innkeeper back then. He was too tired to care at the moment.

"…" Looking down, the kid barely said a word, not even questioning where they were going.

"Are you alright?"

The girl just nodded but said nothing more.

'Cough! Cough!'

_"I need to make her some medicine… by the way? What will I do with a kid? I really didn't think this through. I mean, I never took care of kids before. What do they even need? I know what I'd need as a kid, but I wasn't that normal a kid when I was younger, either. I doubt any kid in this world needed 14 hours of non-stop gaming and the rest for eat, sleep, and showering. There was definitely something else they needed! Something I didn't have as a kid!"_

That was a question for later, as at this moment, King and the girl arrived at their destination.

"Oh, welcome my… shop."

"Hello…" King nodded to the shopkeeper, the well-known blacksmith of the town.

Honestly, he tried to buy some clothes from the clothing shop he spotted in the meantime, but for some reason, the shopkeepers either screamed at them in fear or immediately calling for the guards. His only option was to leave their establishment.

Thus, knowing no other place where people would at least tolerate him, it led his way back here — to Erhard.

"Yo-You!?"

"Do you have some clothes for her?" He motioned to the girl near him. "I tried a few clothing shops in the meantime, but the shopkeepers just screamed and called the guards."

"Tch! And you're surprised? Walking around all bloodied and menacing, dragging around a demi-human slave, and you ask why?" Erhard was pissed, and that was an understatement. Still, he wasn't foolish enough to try and pick a fight with King again. That one time was enough — even though they didn't actually exchange fists — and that was a good thing. After all, one fist was enough to destroy an entire section of a forest for this man.

"Bloodied?" King blinked, looking at the girl who nodded.

"Huh, I might have forgotten to clean myself. I was attacked by a few muggers last night."

"That's still not an excuse to clean yourself. There's a well behind my workshop. It's free of charge; you can clean yourself up there!"

"Oh, thanks, I guess."

When King returned from cleaning himself, Erhard was silent, still measuring the girl from head to toe.

"Still, I didn't think you'd do that in the end. I know that the country's corrupted and all, but buying a slave? You? What do you even need a slave for? You're plenty strong on your own!"

"Hmm…" King didn't even mention that he already freed her, as in the end he'd probably be misunderstood once again. "So, do you have some clothes around for her? I can't really go anywhere else."

"There might be a few, let me look around."

"A weapon would also be good…" She needed to protect herself; after all, King was unsure if he could properly protect her or not. Despite his legendary weapon being a literal shield, he was basically good for nothing when it came to attacking anything near his level.

_"It would be the best if I could entrust her to some orphanage, or find her a loving family." _But as the slaver told him before, demi-humans and beastmen were discriminated heavily in this country. She'd most likely end up in the same place again.

'Cough! Cough! Cough!' The girl gently yanked his arm, and King's attention wandered towards her.

"Hmm?"

She shook her head; her face had an expression filled with fear.

"Look, I don't like it either. Weapons are scary, even if you're the one holding one. I'll try my best to keep you safe, but I can't be there all the time." In fact, King was sure that he wouldn't be able protect her well at all. Still, to say such a thing to a child? Even he knew that'd bring no good.

"…" Still silent, the girl looked around herself, nodding in acceptance. The reality hit her; even if she ran away, the same thing would happen, and she'd get sold off to the slavers. Her only choice was to follow this man, the one that freed him and was even willing to buy a weapon for her.

To say that he was the nicest master — well, he technically wasn't her master, as he already freed her — would be an understatement.

"Bring some fitting weapons, too, please."

"Sure thing…" Erhard nodded, leaving after measuring the girl one last time.

…

_"Those clothes are a little over-sized…" _King thought, a little bit amused.

After the girl cleaned herself up a little bit in the backroom, she changed into her new clothes, exiting the changing rooms to show herself- fortunately, Erhard allowed King to clean himself up a little bit with the well behind his shop, so now he was definitely less scary than before.

"Aren't those clothes a little bit baggy?" He inquired with a raised brow.

He shouldn't complain, as this man was the only one who tolerated them in his shop. Still, it was just weird looking at the girl.

_"She almost looks like an anime character with oversized clothes…" _Or just any girl with oversized clothes. He saw many pictures and videos online when a girlfriend would wear the boyfriend's shirt; revealing it to be too big, the clothes just hanging on her.

_"Don't be a pervert! She is just a kid!" _King berated himself, he could already hear special forces banging on his door.

"She'll grow into it soon enough, there's no need for you to worry."

"That'll take years…" King deadpanned, that would take too long, and in less than a month's time, he'd most likely die along with the other heroes. Even if he did survive, he'd rather find a way home before a year passes. If people found out about his 'second life' stashed away in his apartment... he'd die of shame.

"Oh, so you don't know? Well, I suppose since you were summoned here a week ago, you don't know about it yet."

"What?"

Erhard sighed, starting his explanation. "Demi-humans are different from us humans in the way that they develop faster than humans. She'll grow into those clothes in no time."

"Sure…" Though King doubted it'd happen that fast. Maybe in a year or so if he was being generous, but in less than a month? Even dogs didn't grow that fast!

Well, that wouldn't really be weird for him; a person who came from a world where obsessions and immense negative feelings could literally transform you into a monster.

Yet, now, as he watched her checking her new oversized clothes, he felt something akin to pity towards her. Poor girl, stuck with a useless person like him. Anyone else would make a better guardian — him? Honestly, even a random police officer would do. And the police were essentially useless against monsters.

"So, can you show her a few fitting weapons? With a reasonable price, of course."

"Sure thing, wait just a moment."

Soon, Erhard prepared the required wares, placing them out on the counter.

"So, little lady, pick your fancy! I would personally recommend some short blade, like a dagger, or a shortsword. When you grow bigger, I can recommend you some bigger blades!" Erhard joked.

The girl looked around, still scared, looking at the weapons Erhard prepared.

"Hmm, I don't think she really likes weapons." It was evident from her expression that she was thoroughly scared by them.

"Well, you said you want her to have one." Erhard scratched his bald head confused, somewhat pitying not only the girl but King whom had to deal with her, aside from completing their 'grand' quest of pushing back the waves.

"_Sigh..._ Then just give her your recommendation, I'll pay for the rest."

"Sure thing…" With that, Erhard picked up a fancy looking shortsword, putting it in a scabbard.

"Wait, I said pick your recommendation, but that looks fancy, won't that cost a fortune?"

"I'll sell it to you well under the market price; it was ordered by a noble for her daughter years ago. It's highly unlikely they'll pick it up anymore; it's just sat in my storeroom for years, collecting dust."

"Well, thanks, I suppose. So, what's the grand total?"

"A mere forty silver, and it is yours. I'll also give you the clothes for free."

"Hmm…" King started to calculate.

Last night, he spent around one hundred and twenty silver to save that man and buy this little one. It was one more silver to sleep in that inn. Spending forty silver to a weapon she'd most likely never use…? He was unsure if he should make this decision.

"Fine then…" He still had more than six hundred silver with him thanks to the plants, potions, and monster parts he sold, though the majority of it was just leftovers from the budget that Aultcray gave to him — well, before he banished him for 'raping' his party member. This single weapon won't be the thing that'll push him to bankruptcy — at least, he hoped so. More so, hopefully, that weapon would one day will serve her well — once she overcame her fear of weapons, that is.

"Master…?"

"Oh…" King blinked. "So you can speak?"

"…" She nodded silently, it seemed that she was just very timid.

"I see…" King paid for the weapon, handing it to the girl who put it around her waist — it was still a little too big for her.

"Hey, one more thing before you leave."

"Huh?"

"Don't go dying disgracefully out there, you hear me!?"

"I'll try my best… and thanks for the weapon and clothes."

"Sure thing…"

With that, King and the girl left, leaving the blacksmith alone.

"This guy… seriously! I know he looks like a ruffian, but he's a soft person at heart, huh? I suppose that accusation of 'rape' was false after all."

Outside, the fragrant scent of roasted meat and every other kind of food filled the air. It made King remember that he didn't have anything to eat since last night, and he hadn't had his breakfast yet.

_"Man! I'm starving…"_

_'Gruuuh!'_ Of course it was evident, he wasn't the only one who was hungry.

"Do you want anything to eat?"

"…" Timidly, the girl nodded.

"Let's get something to eat, then." King considered the fact he was too soft, but then mentally punched himself in the face. He bought her from slavery, he had to deal with it. Also, who could say no to a starving child? She wasn't all that thin, but that didn't change the fact that she was malnourished for her age!

"Ah...!"

Finding a somewhat decent restaurant, it was almost like the kid wanted to say something before the two entered.

Unfortunately, King was too preoccupied to recognize it — feeling insecure thanks to all the stares they received, but mainly too hungry to care.

Immediately, many surprised stares aimed against them.

"We-Welcome…"

"Is there a free table for two?"

"Si-Sir? Didn't you read the sign outside?"

"What sign?"

"Demi-humans are not allowed here."

"_Sigh..._ I see." King sighed, disappointed, and the girl just watched him uneasily. "Look, we're hungry, and we're willing to pay. Also, she's just a kid; we'll cause no trouble."

"St-Still…"

"She is just a kid…" That stare! That death stare scared the server out of his wits.

"Th-This way…"

Thus, they were led to an empty table, hidden somewhere in the back.

"What would you like…?"

She didn't answer, but subtly, she glanced towards a table not far from them where a kid enjoyed his meal with his parents.

"What is that?"

"A kid's menu." The server notified them.

"One from that, and a steak with some fries…"

"Ri-Right away!" It was evident that the server was scared out of his wits, King was just that intimidating. Not intentionally, of course, his face and depressed aura were natural.

Well, his aura seemed to grow ever since he was transported here, but what could he say? He never spent more than a day apart from his manga and games... it's been a full week since then! Though he did bring some with him when he was transported here, he already read the manga in his free time, and there was nothing to play his games on! Cars weren't even invented here, to say less about a gaming console.

Shortly after, their meal arrived, the child only watched it hungrily and salivating, King had already started to eat, reading one of his manga on the side.

"I-Is this really for me?"

"Hmm?" He looked up, surprised. Gulping down the bite of steak, King asked; "Are you not hungry? Or do you want something else…?"

"N-No… it is just…"

"Don't worry about it." King offered an encouraging smile. "I bought it for you, after all. If I freed you from slavery, I have to take care of you too, don't I?"

"O-okay."

This new environment had to be shocking to her; he somehow understood her situation.

_"She most likely feels overwhelmed. Like me, when I received the invitation to become an S-class." _Well, being freed from slavery and being promoted to an S-Class Hero were two entirely different things, but both counted as great changes in the individual's life.

King somehow understood how overwhelmed the girl felt.

She started to dig in immediately, using her bare hands and not the cutlery offered.

_"She most likely never learned how to eat with them properly…" _He had no idea where she came from, nor what her upbringing was like before becoming a slave. Only one thing was sure; she had a harsh life until now to not use the cutlery, as if afraid that the meal would disappear should she not eat fast enough.

In all honesty, King had no idea what to do with a kid like her.

He's never taken care of a child before, not to mention, he had absolutely no idea what a demi-human required, or how their bodies differed from a human. Did they need more food? A different diet?

Only one thing was sure; she reminded him of himself. Helpless and scared by the world around her. Stuck alone in a world full of monsters, every corner filled with danger and uncertainty.

No one deserved to experience that.

_"No one should feel that way…"_

…

With their meal finished, they headed out. Like usual, King continued the daily routine he picked up in the passing week.

Collecting herbs, trying to herd and kill every monster coming in his way — in other words, farming.

King wasn't confident enough to go deep into the forest where stronger monsters would pop up — also, as he said before, he didn't have the attack power to defeat any enemies that were relatively close to his level. The occasional wolf or bear could be dealt with.

Even if he could survive, the kid he now needed to take care most likely couldn't. She was just level 1 — according to the party icon that popped up after she joined him. Meaning, he needed to help her power-level. As a level 33, King could deal with most threats on the open field, like basic balloon monsters and other minor mobs with complete ease. However, he needed to make sure that the girl he was taking care of knew how to deal with them.

_"Strangely, for Myne, this party notification didn't appear." _What was odd! In truth, he didn't really do anything differently from when Myne wanted to join his party and the little girl over there.

Not to mention, when the transaction had been made with the slave trader, the notification popped up if he wanted to add her to his party — that did not happen with Myne.

The system said that members in a party would gain EXP together at an increased rate, so it was a no-brainer to accept her into the party.

Speaking of which, he still didn't know her name yet, and thus, she was still displayed as 'girl' in the party window.

_"What an odd system…"_

Grabbing a mushroom-like monster that tried to attack him in mid-air, King effortlessly squashed it with one hand, killing it instantly. He was level 33, the monster was level 1-ish. Even with his stupid-low attack power, it was more than enough to one-hit most monsters in the starter area.

[Congratulations! 'Girl' has leveled up!]

"Whoa!" the girl's eyes went wide, seeing how effortlessly King finished off a monster. Granted, it was an easy starter one, but no normal human could do something like that so easily!

"Well, that's been taken care of…" King muttered, looking at the girl's handiwork. She was still afraid to really use her blade, only instinctively slicing or stabbing towards the ones got through him — most of the times screaming in fear.

Still, it was better than standing completely frozen, waiting monsters to eat him.

_"Yeah, she can deal with monsters better than me…" _at least, compared to his past self.

"Master, just who are you?"

"Me?" King blinked, pointing at himself to confirm that he was her target of question.

"Mm!" The girl nodded curiously. It seems that slowly but steadily, she was regaining her voice. Perhaps she's brave enough after she's realized that she's no longer a slave?

_"Or maybe she was just hungry…?" _King pondered on the possibilities, he too was more vocal when he was not hungry.

"I am King; I was summoned as the Shield Hero." He didn't even mention his previous rank in his original world — it wasn't important anyway — and he didn't want to boast with a title and rank that should've belonged to Saitama in the first place.

Not to mention, there was no point in explaining who he was in his original world — unless he planned on bringing her back to his original world.

The girl froze, trembling after discovering King's identity. "T-The legendary Shield Hero?"

King chuckled, bitterly the girl think him like this. "Legendary? Nothing of the sort. I'm just a person that was summoned here to fight the waves." King sighed sadly, Raphtalia looking at King in a new light.

"By the way, what's your name?"

"Ra-Raphtalia, Sir… I mean, master!"

"Just King will do. I'm not your master, remember? I already freed you from slavery."

"O-Okay…"

"Well then, I'll be gathering materials today, you try your best to attack any monsters. All the monsters here are weak, but try to stay behind me at all times. I don't want you to get hurt, after all."

"R-Right…"

That meant that he had to place himself in harm's way, but he was drastically over-leveled for this area. There was little to no risk of injury here, so he could focus on defending the little girl.

'Cough!'

_"Hmm, I'll need to craft some medicine for her later." _Fortunately, he already unlocked a shield which allowed him to make simple medicine and a few more recipes. He still didn't have the ability to craft high-quality potions like the two he used for saving that mugger.

With that, they continued their farming venture, King doing most of the heavy lifting while the girl named Raphtalia remained behind, trying to defend herself if a monster get too close.

Though for the most part she just collected monster parts, there was that one time where a small monster ambushed Raphtalia, and she managed to kill it herself before King needed to do anything.

Most times, it was just a lucky slash, or just her instinct. Still, she was doing pretty well for a little girl that had was afraid to even hold a weapon previous, and probably little to no prior experience holding a weapon to go with it.

Even an adult like King was scared of monsters; he didn't need to imagine how stressed a little girl would be.

* * *

And thus, they spent their day like this.

A few hours later, King told Raphtalia to clean herself in the river after a particularly nasty encounter with an egg monster. Despite doing so in Erhard's shop, she had most likely just washed her face and wiped her body, not doing a thorough washing.

"Hmm, let's try this new recipe." With great practice, King recovered a few ingredients from his bag, and changed his shield to the Mushroom shield, preparing the basic set the pharmacist gave him as a bonus during one of their trades — and he also showed him how to do basic compounding.

Immediately, the icon popped up, which signified his increased effectiveness in compounding. Also, there were recipes displayed which he could craft now, paired with the material requirement and how much he had under his hand from the said ingredient.

Using his simple set, King imitated the proficient moves of the pharmacist — with a lot less finesse he might add.

[Compounding success! Medicine for Cold Created! EXP gained 2!]

The notification floated before King's eyes.

There were times when the creation process failed, and the ingredients used turned into a black waste, and he had to start over again.

In a way, this crafting system really resembled a game — yeah, of course it would. Everything in this world so far resembled a game so much, King would mistake it as a VRMMORPG if he was none the wiser. Sadly, those didn't exist yet back in his world so it was a definite 'yes' to the fact that he was in a different world, no matter how he'd like it to just be a dream or a test-run of a VRMMORPG.

_"Hmm… everything really is game-like in this world. Honestly, if not for the looming threat of death in the next month, I'd be slightly happy about being here."_

King was not a fan of crafting in games, only doing so if it was necessary — for example, the best armor, weapon, and items in some games were only available if you crafted them yourself.

In those cases, he had no choice but had to suffer through the leveling grind of professions, then farm for ingredients to craft those items. Some games had good crafting mechanics and were actually pretty fun to level, others were just pure grinding that would make even the most patient gamer want to give up.

_"Still, this shield is pretty handy in the way where I don't need to grind for recipes nor leveling up any crafting skills, I just need to level up and upgrade the shield itself, and feed it ingredients that I want to use to craft a potion! It's as easy as that, and some recipes are immediately unlocked after, talk about convenient!"_

Of course, he didn't dislike the crafting process of creating an item, only the grinding necessary to reach it. In this case, it was convenient enough to not need to care much about it — not to mention, it was his biggest source of income so far. On some days where he could find almost no monsters to kill, he'd even be able to earn more EXP from crafting than grinding.

These things, combined with the immense usefulness and quality of the potions created with his shield, it made him reconsider his stance about crafting. Then again, it was a lot less stressful than fighting monsters, so naturally King was biased towards the former.

'Cough! Cough! Cough!'

When Raphtalia was finished, she sat down not far from King, warming herself near the fire which he lit.

_"Who'd have thought the integrated laser pointer in my phone would've come handy one day…?"_

It's strongest setting was strong enough to light small leaves to start the fire with; also, the phone contained many useful survival gadgets he didn't really care about back then — but now they were immensely helpful.

At first, King had no idea why Metal Knight integrated all these things into every Heroes Association communicator, but now he was glad that he did.

_"I don't know how to actually light a fire with just simple tools, aside from those videos I watched online. I'm also lucky that my phone was in my pocket when I was transported here." _More so, he was lucky that he was an S-Class hero and had access to such unique experimental technology only the brightest minds of his world could come up with.

The phone contained high-efficiency solar panels, and gyroscopic charging, making sure that it would practically never runs out of energy — unless one WANTED it to run out of energy and had to actually put in effort to drain all the energy in the phone without charging it.

Now, he only needed to move around or open up the small solar panels onto direct sunlight, and it would be always charged!

_"I need to make sure that I'm available in case someone from the Hero Association tries to reach out for me."_

It was true that he was in an entirely different world, but he came from his world to this one — there was definitely a way back!

Be it magic or science; he trusted the eggheads back in his world — Or at least, had enough faith in them to figure something out.

_"Like in a manga I've read that one time, all windows are two-way entrances…" _In that case, what is brought through, should logically be able to be sent back, no? At least, King really hoped so.

_"Sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic…" _At least, he really hoped so. If even Child Emperor or Metal Knight weren't able to figure it out, he'd be in seriously deep trouble. Living in this world with almost zero modern comforts?

_"Shit…"_

'Cough! Cough!'

"Oh! right, here, drink this." King offered the simple medicine to the girl, who flinched from the bitterness of the drink.

"Um..."

"Be careful, it is bitter…" He offered a small smile, only to receive a small pout. True, the drink was bitter even for him — for a little girl? He was surprised that she didn't immediately vomit it out.

King recovered a small portion of the dry rations he bought back in the town, offering it to the girl.

"Here, you need to keep your stamina up…"

And thus, she ate the dried meat, enjoying even this kind of food.

"Sir Shield Hero…"

"King is fine…"

"Sir King… why are you so good to me? Why did you free me?"

King stopped on his tracks, glancing away. "I suppose you reminded me of myself," King told the truth, he doesn't want to lie to her.

"Yourself?" The girl's ears perked up, and King just nodded. "Bu-But, you're the Shield Hero! It can't be…!"

"I'm no hero; at least, I don't feel like one."

"Do-Don't feel like one?"

"I'm just a simple person trying to survive in a world of monsters, doing what he feels is right. That can't be considered a hero. Also, it's the task of the strong to protect the weak, one can't be called a hero for doing just that."

"J-Just a person? Doing what you feel is right? Protecting the weak…?" Raphtalia pondered for a moment, her expression going blank as she mumbled, thinking through what her savior told her.

Outwardly, King looked confident — his expression stoic and serious — yet, deep inside, he screamed in denial.

_"THE HELL IT IS!? I STOLE THIS FROM A MANGA!"_

"Well, shall we stop for today? The sky's darkening, and it would be bad to spend the night outside."

"Mm…" The girl nodded timidly, remembering the cold nights in her cage without anything to cover her.

King was aware that he had to start traveling further away from the town if he wanted to find monsters appropriate to his level.

_"I still have no idea what to do with her in the long run. Nor how to defeat monsters close to my level..."_

She was now at level 5 after just a day of grinding.

An impressive growth compared to her when she was level 1, when she started out.

Still, King wasn't sure if she would be able to survive if they started to go to more dangerous areas.

He couldn't be there all the time to protect her; not to mention, she freaks out when she needed to use her weapon.

_"I need to do something. If aggro works like it does in games, she'll be the one to draw monsters towards her from the furthest areas if we proceed further before leveling her up."_

Things didn't look very bright; King already feared what will come next.

As the last rays of sunlight painted the horizon with orange colors, King decided it was time to head back, sell the excess loot, and find an inn to rest.

_"Sooner or later, we'll have to spend our time outside the city, but how would we manage? The kid's only starting to learn how to properly use a weapon, and if we have to sleep outside, what about monsters? What about then?"_

Maybe, if he could manage to convince her to use a weapon properly, they could level up and proceed faster. They had less than three weeks to prepare, after all.

_"I know it's risky, also, making a kid use a weapon?" _It was heavily against King's moral code, but what could he do? He was out of options.

_"Nonetheless, I can't do anything about it right now… I'll think more about it tomorrow."_

With that, they retreated for today, after selling their loot and crafted potions, they found an inn where they spent the night.

It was to be expected; once again, King barely slept thanks to the girl. Her coughing lessened, but she screamed all night, calling for her father and mother.

He barely managed to calm her down— the innkeeper almost throwing them out in the middle of the night — but then suddenly decided to change his mind. King wondered why, but it was obvious. His face was enough to leave the innkeeper scurrying. It didn't stop him from kindly asking them to leave the next day, though.

If this continued on like this, not only will King collapse out of exhaustion, but they'd need to spend every night under the sky — something King hoped wouldn't happen so soon.

"Sorry…" The girl sniffed, feeling guilty the next morning.

"Don't worry, it's not your fault. I'm sure we can solve this." At least, he really hoped so.

While walking out of the city, King even bought her a ball to comfort her. He couldn't help it; kids were his weak point.

According to a few manga he read before, children would calm down after playing around a little bit or after receiving a toy.

He really hoped that this cheap ball made from balloon scraps would be able to calm her and make the next few nights bearable.

…

And thus, a whole week passed like this. Farming, crafting and leveling, trying to push deeper into the forest to find stronger monsters.

Despite all the progress they had made, King started to feel that it was hopeless. He'd likely never find his way home or level enough to survive. Day after day, he felt exhaustion — both mental and physical — catching up with him.

_"A positive thing, though; she no longer freezes up when the monster is coming right at her, and she's fine with using her blade and stabbing them now. Still, I feel bad for making her do this."_

He offered her the chance to leave under the passing week, he even planned to give her some money to start her life, but she said no — 'I want to accompany the Shield Hero and help him in his quest to save the world' — as she proclaimed proudly — even pouting slightly.

Poor kid, she had no idea what kind of person fate brought her together with. Still, for the time being, he had to take care of her, until she was able to take care of herself.

_"Also, even if she had accepted my offer to leave, where would she go?" _Hearing her screams at night, she would constantly call for her parents. _"They'd have most likely died."_ He could understand her thinking. She didn't want to go back to being a slave, and she didn't know how to survive out on her own. Obviously, she'd take the choice of following him around.

"_Sigh..._"

One thing that was positive, though, was that he realized he could use his shield to teleport around. He could return to the town or any areas he had previously visited. Thus, it was no problem to move quicker and continue where they left off last time. It was quite handy, it was a starter skill every game character had for their convenience — they worked in almost the same way.

"S-Sir King?" The girl blinked, catching up with him as they walked down on a dirt road.

"Yes?"

"Am I just a hindrance to you?"

"Why would you be?" King asked, raising a brow in confusion.

"It's just…" She bit her lip. "It's just that I always cause trouble for you."

"Trouble?" King was surprised, aside from the few problems that arose but weren't her fault — like her nightmares and coughing; she was a good kid. Why would she be a hindrance to him?

"You know…" She started to play with her fingers. "Because of me, we can't sleep in inns for more than a night; and you need to protect me. Like yesterday, when those boys tried to take my ball away, and you had to scare them away."

"Oh, that…" King hummed, remembering what happened yesterday.

**Flashback:**

Being unable to take it anymore, he rented a room in a cheap inn he never visited before, willing to sleep through the day to make it up at night without the kid. Speaking of which, it was strange that he didn't feel the chill of the night anymore.

_"Hmm, it's probably just my high resistance stat working…" _And it was pretty much confirmed; his body was like that of a game-character's.

"It is really fine for me to go out?"

"Of course, you're still a kid, I can imagine how bored you would be just staying in this room all day. Just come back before nightfall and don't stray too far from the inn, otherwise you could get lost."

King would not mind being alone, as throughout the whole week, he had hardly any time alone because of needing to take care of her. An introvert Otaku like him would really crave being alone for even a few short hours, at least.

"Yay! Thank you!"

With that, Raphtalia left the room, going out to play a little bit with her ball. King was lying down in his bed.

"Finally, some peace…"

He wasn't worried about her. As he got to know, being demi-human or not, adventurers and traders were left alone by the local authority—not wanting to raise the ire of different countries these people belong to. As much as they discriminated against demi-humans or beastmen, they wouldn't just directly harass them in broad daylight, unless they wanted to invite trouble for themselves.

"Ah, some sleep… finally."

And he really, really hoped that he could finally get some sleep, yet just before he could fall into the REM phase, a scream made his eyes pop open.

"Eiii!" It was Raphtalia's scream.

"Oh, for fuck's sake..." King mumbled indignantly. He was just about to get some shut-eye, dammit!

"Why is a demi-human like you playing around here?"

"Yeah, go away! Filthy beast."

"Gi-Give it back!"

"What now?" King's heart started to beat loudly, being woken up so suddenly, he walked to the window and looked out.

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

"What's the meaning of this!?" King shouted, leaning out from the window of his room.

"Not your problem, old geezer!" Shouted back one of the delinquents, a kid only a few years older than Raphtalia.

_"Old geezer? Seriously? I'm just 29! Wait, no, I'm pissed at them for ruining my sleep!"_

"Yeah, just ignore this!"

"This isn't your problem! Or do you want to protect a filthy demi-human?"

"You will leave, before I get down there…" King squinted his eyes angrily; for the first time, the 'King Engine' didn't beat out of nervousness. He just wanted to get some sleep, but these little _shits _HAD to go and ruin his day. Nope, enough was enough.

King wasn't just angry. He was_ fucking pissed._

"Huh? What's that noise?"

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

"Stealing isn't nice. I'll ask you again, leave, and give her ball back... or there will be consequences." He told them in a steady tone, recognizing that one of them was holding Raphtalia's ball.

"Ahh… Ahhhh!"

"Sorry!"

"Please forgive us!"

"Huh?" King just blinked, his anger turning into confusion, not understanding what just happened, with the kids running away scared out from their wits.

"Yeah! Sir King, you're a true hero! Thank you!"

"Sure…" King just sighed, still confused about what happened. Nonetheless, he was relieved those kids were leaving his companion alone. That kid was through a lot; bullying her was too much.

Then again, he was just super pissed that something interrupted his sleep.

"Just be careful. Tell me if something happens."

"Mm!" With that, Raphtalia went back to playing happily and cheerfully with her ball, and unbeknownst to either of them, the people in the surroundings were whispering to themselves, not daring to approach her during the day, fearing the wrath of the mighty King coming for them! He spared no one, not even children!

**Flashback End:**

_"Still, it's a little strange why they ran away so fast. Maybe they got scared after realizing I was going to complain to their parents about their behavior? No matter, I'll be sure to give them a piece of my mind if that happens again."_

Of course, the reason behind their sudden escape was entirely different.

Unknown to him, waking up so suddenly increased his pulse enough to make the King engine audible, combined with the dark circles under his eyes and with his face that could intimidate even Dragon-level threats, it would be a wonder that they didn't run away immediately.

Adding onto his 'threat' was a weapon that able to disable even the strongest monsters back in his world.

A presence that painted a terrifying picture of a monster in human skin in the mind of those kids, a person who wouldn't ask twice, and when angered would release a bloodbath that would make even the ghosts wail.

Yeah, it was a trademark look of his that saved his skin more times than he could count.

"That isn't your fault, it's those children, and their parents for not educating them right."

"Really? You're not mad about that? But then that time I peed the bed? You weren't angry at me?"

"Well, that wasn't a good thing, but that wasn't your fault either, was it? Accidents happen sometimes, and they're not controllable. You're getting over it now, and that's a good thing."

Though he had never peed the bed before, he had definitely pissed himself before, like that one time a bird monster popped into his apartment. If not for Saitama being there at the time, he'd probably have been a red mush the police wouldn't have been able to identify.

"Ye-Yes, I suppose you are right."

"Good…" King patted her head, smiling.

_"Thinking about it, her ears are really fluffy…"_

"S-Sir King, please stop!"

"Oh, sorry about that…" Her ears might be sensitive, too. Animals usually don't like when someone tampered with them.

"Lo-Look out!" Suddenly, a rabbit-like creature that was bigger than normal jumped out from the bushes, aiming towards King. Its huge fangs looked dangerous, and they were heading for King's neck.

It would've done absolutely nothing and King would've shrugged it off by literally crushing the monster in his hand, but Rapthalia didn't know that.

In just a moment, the girl was before King, using her shortsword to cut the monster in two.

[Exp gained: 10!]

"I-I killed it! I-It's blood!" Her face went pale immediately after realizing that she was now covered in blood.

Up until now, they had only fought creatures that didn't have blood! Actually, being near blood terrified the girl!

The girl breathed haphazardly, seeing the terrifying red substance that covered her whole body, making her hair sticky.

"It's alright…" King placed his hand on her shoulder, looking in her eyes. "You managed to kill it."

"Bu-But… it is dead. Its blood! I-It's…!"

_"Sigh…_ Look. We kill, or we die, that's the law of nature. We eat them, or they eat us."

A quote from a manga. One of King's many sources of inspiration.

"I-I see…"

"I hate blood, too. Blood, weapons, violence, I don't like any of it. Whenever we get attacked by a monster, it's normal to be afraid. Even I feel fear when I think about facing an enemy." And that was the truth, the thought of facing a monster that was the same level as him... it terrified him!

The single, lone thought that there would be a wave coming in the near future that would kill everything if they didn't stop it was all that King needed to push him to wake up every day and get to grinding.

_"If it wasn't for this wave thing... It's a no-brainer, I'd just hide somewhere and let the other heroes to the job for me. I mean, what if I don't survive the wave? Will all my suffering in this world just be for nothing?"_

"Th-Then…?" She gulped, looking into King's deep blue eyes. "H-How, can you face them? How can you be so… courageous?"

_"Courageous?" _King smiled bitterly, pitying the poor kid for expecting such a thing from a coward like him. Honestly, she was just deluded, not recognizing how much he trembled every time they wandered out.

"Fear is the sign that you are alive, Raphtalia. Courage is overcoming your fear to protect what's important to you."

_"I totally stole this from somewhere!" _Unfortunately, it didn't come to his mind where he stole this quote from.

"I-I see…" She mumbled, looking down.

Though this was stolen from some of the manga he read, it didn't make it any less accurate.

Courage was needed to overcome fear. If you didn't fear anything, there would be no need for courage to overcome those fear.

Unfortunately for King, the only thing that pushed him forward was an even bigger fear. The fear he would not live long enough to go home. In that case, he didn't use courage to overcome his fears, he just stamped out his fears with an even bigger fear.

_"Though it still leaves me in fear anyway…" _He was back in square one. That thought didn't help his frail ego and self-esteem at all.

"Let's get you cleaned up; I'll solve the rest for today."

"And hey..."

"Y-Yes?" the girl looked at him, still slightly shaken.

"You did well! You're one step closer to overcoming your fears." King offered a thumbs up, smiling encouragingly. A moment that was engraved in the heart of the girl, a moment she would treasure forever.

"So, let's try and overcome our fears together, okay? Let's get stronger, in order to survive."

"O-Okay…" And with that, the image of the inspiring hero — King was NOT — was born in the heart of Raphtalia, making her push herself harder to live up to his savior.

* * *

Continuing their adventure, will the two manage to survive what's coming? You will know if you read further!

Until then… be safe, and may King be with you!

* * *

**A/N:**

**Well, that's for now!**

**I hope it was good enough!**

**The next chapter is coming when it is ready!**

**In the next chapter:**

**Overcome your fear! The wave of the apocalypse!**

**Can the "strongest" hero save the world!**

**Read and find out!**

**Until then…**

**Be safe! Sail safe! Good day! Good night! Be well! Stay clear from Corona!**

**RnR!**

**Read and review!**

**Send PM if you have question!**

* * *

**Editor's Note: Corona's a bitch, but shitty internet is another. Sorry for the delays.**


	5. The Calm Before the Storm

**Written by Oblivon2991**

**Proofread: The usual drunken gang of misfits and TranscendedPotato**

**Thank you for reading my fanfiction and for giving me a chance.**

**My mother tongue isn't English, so please be patient about the grammatical issues.**

**I don't own One Punch Man anime/manga/webcomic, it belongs to ONE.**

**I don't own The Rising of the Shield Hero (Japanese: ****盾の勇者の成り上がり****, Hepburn: Tate no Yūsha no Nariagari), it is written by Aneko Yusagi.**

**If you have anything to add or have questions, or remark, please review, or send a PM.**

**Thank you!**

**Now let's start the story!**

* * *

**Chapter 5: The Calm Before the Storm**

* * *

"Oh! Hey, Ren!"

"Hmm?" The sword hero glanced towards his fellow hero, offering a bored expression. "Oh, it's you…" It wasn't subtle; he wasn't as delighted meeting the spear hero.

"…Motoyasu."

"Oh! Why the long face? Come on! Cheer up a little, man! It's been some time since we met! Why so serious? What's going on with you and your group, by the way? You manage to level up?"

"Somewhat…" Ren said shortly, not bothering to further explain.

"Tsk! You and your vague answers! Anyway, as you can see, My party and I are preparing well for the wave! We've been completing quest after quest!"

"And you pocket all the money they offer, and then some…" Ren added. Motoyasu was not reluctant to ask — or demand — a high price for his help.

"Well, a hero and his group need to eat! Don't they? It's only natural to be paid for your work, right?"

"So you say…" Ren measured Motoyasu and his all-girl party. "I see your group upgraded their gear, too."

"Yep! Oh, and speaking of my party, we have a high turnover rate! You wouldn't believe how many girls want to join my party! But I don't allow them to be near gore, nor force them to stay in my party when they want to leave. That would be inappropriate for a man like myself!" Motoyasu shook his head, resting his legendary spear on his shoulder with a smug smile.

The girls behind him applauded, celebrating their hero.

"As expected, Lord Motoyasu!"

"Yes! He is the most chivalrous hero…!" The girls noted one after another.

"Hahaha! Being so popular is hard sometimes!"

"You know, you might get stabbed in the back one day…" Ren sweatdropped. The excess trust this guy showed to all these girls, and how many he collected around himself would eventually lead him to offend one of them, who will stab him in the back eventually. _"Worse… all of them might band together and kill him as the Senators did with Caesar…"_

"Oh! That's already happened to me!" Out of the blue, Motoyasu announced that he died before; as if it was a completely unimportant matter.

"What? You mean to say you've died before coming to this world?" If that was the case, it was kind of a pathetic death. Stabbed to death by a girl — or girls that he cheated on? Was this guy's brain working? Repeating the same thing, the same mistake?

"Yeah… unfortunately, there was a misunderstanding between one of my girlfriends and me… it can't be helped. Hahaha! By the way? How did you die? You have a pretty good face; how many girls chased after you? You don't seem to be the type to take action."

"I'm not like you…"

"Huh?"

"As I remember, before coming here, I got unlucky and ran into a murderer that lurked the streets. That criminal was about to catch me as I was trying to save a childhood friend of mine. The next thing I know, I was in this world…"

"Geez! How unlucky can you be?"

"I can ask the same of you…"

"Ah! How unfortunate for you, Ren. I was simply hit by a dumpster truck when I was turned right on a street. Compared to me, your death sounds a lot more interesting." In the end, the Bow Hero also appeared. A coincidence? Yes, yes it was. It didn't make it any less impressive, though. All of them meeting each other at the same spot, at the same time?

"Wow! That really does sound lame compared to us." Motoyasu blinked, then started to laugh. "What a coincidence!"

"Indeed, it is…"

"I wonder if this is the afterlife?" The spear hero pondered, rubbing his freshly shaved chin.

"Hmm, I'm not sure."

"It is certainly dream-like."

"Like a game world."

"Itsuki is right. We might have had to start over from level 1, but after how many times I cleared this area back then, I can clear the dungeons with my eyes closed."

"Yup! You're right about that, Ren! It's so easy being the Great Heroes that will save the world! One thing is for sure, though. I'm not popular just because I am a hero. That much, I already know."

Ren can only sigh seeing Motoyasu's antics, shaking his head.

"By the way, have any of you heard anything from that King guy?"

"Eh? You mean that strange guy with the scary face?"

"Last I heard, he's been going around the countryside, scaring people into buying his loot."

"How villainous! First raping poor Myne, then even threatening the civilians! How can such a vile person call himself a hero!? Gah! I want to beat him up so much!" Motoyasu was clearly angered upon mention of King, even shaking his fist.

"Don't worry, Lord Motoyasu. I am sure that in time, you will strike that Shield Demon down. Truly, how can such a villain call himself a hero? It would be best to put such a beast in prison." On his side, Myne reassured the Spear hero, offering her best fake smile.

"Actually, you didn't show any evidence, Myne. King clearly had a convincing alibi for that night, much better than yours, even."

"I even investigated the alchemist, who confirmed his statement. He indeed bought that stomach medicine, saying King bought it himself." Ren continued after Itsuki.

"That's still no evidence of his innocence! He bought stomach medicine! So what! He could've still raped her later that night!" Motoyasu tried to be protective, forcing the point she brought up to the other two heroes who were still skeptical.

"As King said, like everyone else, he is entitled to the presumption of innocence. Until proven guilty, he will be considered as innocent. Without clear evidence, we can only guess what truly happened. But after seeing his strength first hand, I presume that if he really did force himself onto Myne, she would be in rougher shape than she was back then in the throne room…" Ren's eyes squinted, watching the redhead suspiciously.

The girl drew his suspicion since the first moment she volunteered for King's team. Then, her sudden change of sides made her even more apprehensive in his eyes.

Her panicking tone was a dead giveaway; she was hiding something when King started to question her. From the very first moment, she was trying to get away from directly providing evidence or subject herself to any medical investigation. The lack of any signs of being forced to endure such a violent act was the last nail in the coffin.

King likely hadn't violated this girl at all. Moreover, she looked collected and firm when they arrived in the throne room, with a big grin on her face upon seeing her on Motoyasu's side. The smile only a victor would offer after a well-thought-out trap...

He's seen that smile too many times in the face of many of his old, cocky classmates. Those apprehensive, malevolent smiles were smiles that Ren knew all too well.

Yet, the question still stood; Why did Myne want to dirty the Shield Hero's name? It constantly bugged Ren, making him think of it ever since they departed that day.

"Ren is right. Without evidence, we can't judge King based on her accusations alone." Itsuki also nodded firmly. Raised in a democratic country, his conscience didn't allow him to judge others hastily — though when King was first accused, he too assumed that King was in the wrong until he provided sufficient evidence...

"Are you out of your minds!? That 'beast' violated her! Then he left without punishment! Are you with him, or what!?" Motoyasu angrily accused the two heroes of siding with the Shield Hero.

"I never said that. I only said that we should see things logically, and see the evidence present before us before we judge him. Why would King want to rape Myne? What reason does he have? Did you get to know him as such a person?"

"Tch! That guy was weird from the beginning! Speaking about nonsense like one big continent and the like! He's crazy, I say! He almost killed us with those balloons he herded together and attracted them to us! Or are you saying that it was also a coincidence?!"

"Maybe it was, I don't know. I only said that we don't have enough evidence to say for sure he is guilty or not. Nor did Myne show enough evidence to confirm that she was indeed raped or allowed herself to examined by healers or doctors. She might've tried to frame him, whatever reason she has to do so…"

"How dare you!? That beast raped me! I was…!"

"Has a doctor checked you for traces of violation yet? You looked strangely fit and happy compared to what happened that night. Wouldn't the innkeeper or the residents of the nearby rooms have recognized your screams for help? Also, knowing King's strength, he could have easily subjugated you, leaving marks of the violation on your body."

"I-I was scared, I was…"

"I've met people like you many times. You use false charges and ridiculous accusations to get what you want. Being a woman, people even believe you without any evidence to support your claims, but not me." Ren clicked his tongue. "I don't trust people like you. Show some evidence first, and then I might just believe you. But until then, it simply stinks as an attempt to frame King. Whatever your reason is, you will not fool me."

"Hey, Ren… don't you think this is a little harsh?" Itsuki placed his hand on his fellow hero's shoulder, smiling nervously. Maybe he was right; hell, his argument seemed the more rational of the two. Still, it was a little bit much, saying all that bluntly. Couldn't he have... you know, put it nicer?

"This is simply what I think, Itsuki. Logic supports my points! Her lack of proper answers and panicking when she was questioned by King himself shows that she is lying. She also lacks any further evidence to confirm the case, simply repeating how she was 'raped' by King, like a broken recorder… "

"Tch! Come, Lord Motoyasu! The Hero of the Sword seems to be foolish, to believe the Shield demon! No, it might be that he's brainwashed Lord Ren already!"

"Can he do that?" Motoyasu glanced at Itsuki uneasily, who just shrugged helplessly.

"Don't ask me, I don't have such an ability, nor have any knowledge about such a thing." According to his knowledge, there was no such thing implemented yet in the game.

"I have no time for this nonsense. Believe what you want. I've listed my conclusion already; the rest is up to you. Now, if you excuse me, I need to return to my mission. Have a nice day…" With that, Ren and his party members left the guild, leaving only Itsuki and Motoyasu behind.

"You know, he has a point."

"You too, Itsuki?!" Motoyasu said, feeling betrayed.

"Yeah… Ren was pretty convincing, as well. Everything — or the lack of evidence actually points towards King-san's innocence. He has a pretty good alibi too. Also, why would he rape her? Think about it! Why would he scare away his only teammate when he only has a shield? Without a party member to support him, he's basically useless."

"You can't be serious! That guy is…!"

"Sorry, that's my opinion about the case. Now, if you excuse me, I need to go. I have some quests to complete. Later, Motoyasu…" Itsuki waved his goodbye, leaving the spear hero to his own devices, filled with doubt after what evidence Ren listed—filled with doubt if he could trust his own teammate after all of that?

The words of that monster of a person and the logical argument of his fellow heroes against the pleas of a beautiful damsel and the trust of king Aultcray — It was evident which he would rather trust. Still, when he heard their reasoning once more, some doubt started to surface in his mind, which pointed towards Myne's false charges and the innocence of the Shield Hero — despite how scary-looking he was.

"Lord Motoyasu, it seems that the Shield Demon has infected even Lord Itsuki's mind as well! How shameless, using such a tactic! They are really a lost cause. Please, don't believe their nonsense." Gently, Myne turned Motoyasu's face towards her pleading green eyes. "Will you believe me? Your Myne? Will you believe my innocence and the treacherous act of that beast?"

It only took a moment and her to innocently bat her eyelids to crush his doubt and persuade Motoyasu into believing her terribly-constructed lie with dozens of loopholes- already pointed out by the other three heroes, derailing the playboy completely.

_"Sigh!_ Maybe you're right, Myne. There is no way a cute girl like you would lie to me. Right?" Motoyasu glanced at Myne, really hoping that it was the case. After all, someone so cute couldn't possibly tell such a lie, right?

"Right!" And the girl nodded with a big grin, her eyes not even trembling after telling her lies. Indeed, she was a natural! Or so she thinks herself to be one, but in truth, out of the three heroes that she should've persuaded into turning against the Shield Hero, only the hero that thought with his crotch believed him, the other two not buying a word of her spiel.

After taking up a few quests, Motoyasu and his party left the establishment.

Their path will surely cross with the other heroes, of that, there was no doubt about it.

* * *

**Scene Change: Somewhere in the countryside:**

_"That day, when the wave appeared, haunting me all this time… we lived in a small village on the outskirts of this country, a place where you could see the ocean."_

The child walked by the man's side in silence. Just now, a small but sad smile formed on her face, remembering what she had lost.

_"It was a town full of demi-humans. This country isn't kind to demi-humans, but everyone was friendly with each other and lived peacefully there. Until that day…"_

Raphtalia glanced up, watching the clouds move slowly and gently, the lights in her eyes dimmed slightly as the crown of the trees passed her view, remembering that horrible day.

_"Demons and monsters we had never seen before came swarming out in numbers unheard before, and my town was swept up with by the wave before anyone knew what was going on…"_

The girl clenched her fist, several tears ran down on her face, feeling powerless as she remembered how her parents pushed her down a cliff to save her, just before that terrible demon took them... and tore them apart.

_"I was swept away by the waves, and when I recognized what happened, I was already captured and sold as a slave."_

"Yes… it happened just like that," She mumbled in a trance, her body in autopilot as she walked near King.

"Did you said something?"

"Ah, nothing, Lord King. I was just talking to myself." The girl quickly denied it, yet, she shuddered as King glanced down at her. It was as if he could see through her very being.

"I see…" With a raised brow, King sighed. Something bothered the kid; he was sure of it. Nonetheless, he wasn't a man who would dig into another's past without their permission.

He was the same; he too had many shameful secrets he would rather not speak about. Asking others about their secrets while hiding his would only be hypocritical.

"Lord King…?"

"Hmm?"

"Will you… will you stop the wave? Will you save the people of this world?"

"Hmm…" King hesitated to answer.

After spending some time in this world, forming a two-member party with this little girl, his lack of confidence in worldly matters should have already disappeared. He should have already gained enough confidence to handle whatever awaited him. He already had the skills to take on some monsters, even! Back then, he couldn't even do anything against a simple balloon monster! Now? He could deal with them with one hit — or squash.

Yet, now looking at Raphtalia's expectant gaze, waiting for the solution from an unreliable person like him, his confidence hit rock bottom once more. Moreover, just looking at him this way pushed King to the point where he would rather run away and hide than face whatever monstrosity would pop up come the next corner.

_"According to my calculations, only around less than two weeks remains, and the wave will arrive. What should I do?! I don't even know what to expect! I don't have any information about what will come from it, only that it will be worse than the previous one…"_

With no info about what kind of monsters, nor how strong the monsters will appear in the next wave, he was not confident he could handle them at all! Alone, there was no way he could face them! Even with Raphtalia to help dish out damage, it was questionable if he could. Didn't they say their own military forces couldn't do anything? What could one 29-year old otaku and a 10-year old girl do against that?!

Granted, the other heroes also had parties of their own, but still, he hesitated to risk the kid's life in such a dangerous mission. He would rather leave her behind in a safe place if he could, even if it meant his only way to dish out any form of damage was gone.

_"Compared to the small monsters we encountered outside the city, my level is rather high in comparison, and I can even ignore them entirely. Nonetheless, I'm in no way confident that I can handle a monster that was able to defeat a whole army…"_

From what minute information he managed to glean from his first few days here, the previous wave painted a dreadful picture, even more so for the next — which was said to be even more challenging and dangerous than the last.

According to these resources, a lot of trash mobs would appear when the wave came. Those, he wouldn't worry about. After some time, stronger and more powerful monsters would be mixed among them as elite monsters — and that wasn't even including the boss monster that would be rumored to appear.

_"And if that wasn't enough… Some of the beasts described by the survivors resembled the legendary monsters that appeared a long time ago in my world…"_

Tales that spoke about the first monsters, monsters that destroyed multiple countries before the heroes of old stopped them!

There were many legends circulating in his original world, mostly coming from the old era where countries still existed. Most of them described world-ending monsters. Creatures the old heroes and military forces of the old world fought off courageously and eventually triumphed against them.

Eventually, after the world was unified into one giant super-continent and everyone lived in megacities, those old monsters slowly stopped appearing, and a different kind of monster appeared. Mysterious beings, monsters that were originally human.

_"They say that smaller monsters are less dangerous... In my world's case, that's not entirely true. Size can be a deceiving factor. Just look at Tatsumaki or Child Emperor. Both have the build and size of a kid, and yet, their capabilities are terrifying! Worse still, they're still considered 'human'. How terrifying would it be if they were monsters?"_

Even thinking of it made King tremble in his boots. A mysterious being Tatsumaki or Child Emperor... hell, any S-Class hero that turned into a mysterious being would be a nightmare!

As a kid, he was always amazed by those myths of old, imagining himself to be the hero who saved the day when he read about them in the history books from the library — and the animes that were adapted from them.

As an adult, however, his perception of the world changed. Living in a world where the threat of monsters, actual, terrifying monsters were real had opened his eyes, eventually realizing that he was in no way the type who wanted to face such dangerous beings! Especially since he had no special ability to speak of!

He did not resemble a hero that the tales divined. Instead, he would rather hide to save his skin, leaving the problem for others to solve.

_"Good grief… I am not at home anymore. But, isn't that more concerning!? There's no Hero Association or Saitama around to save me when a monster pops up. I can't just run away and hope that the other heroes would pop up and save the day. There are only four heroes in this world — and I'm one of them! Dammit! This sucks! I wanna go home..."_

Worse still, he's reached the point where the nearby monsters gave little experience — too little to matter for him. The girl still gained some, though. Even so, it was lackluster compared before, her growth greatly diminishing in the past week as there were no monsters strong enough to get her a respective amount of experience. To do so would mean adventuring further than before — and King would rather jump in a pot of boiling water before he did that — boiling water no longer damaged him, anyway.

"Lord King?" His attention snapped back to the girl who still looked at him expectantly. "Will you save them?"

"Well…" Dammit, and now he had to answer such a question? Why was the world making him suffer so? Was his pain that amusing to whatever gods there were? Did he do something wrong in a past life? "Oh, we've arrived at the cave that the villagers spoke about."

"Ah…" Before the girl could ask any more, King took the lead, urging himself to escape the answer — the lie that the girl expected from him.

At that moment, he'd rather enter a scary looking, dark cave than answer the girl's question. Indeed, King was not good at reassuring others when he himself could barely calm himself. Moreover, there was no way he wanted to destroy the hopes of a kid who gave him too much credit.

He was not that cruel... A liar? Maybe. He did abuse his S-Class status quite a bit in order to scare away monsters — but they could be counted as actions to survive. He did end up cleaning the streets of monsters, after all. But cruel? He never thought of himself as such a person. Even in video games, he opted to stay on the morally correct path — most of the time.

"Let's see… [Pickaxe Shield]!" A new shield appeared on his arm; recovering a pickaxe from his bag, King started to hit the ore vein, retrieving unprocessed ore directly from the source.

Originally, his physical condition was poor to the point that even with a pickaxe, he wouldn't be able to scratch the ore, nor crack stone, but with newfound physical strength that was a product of his leveling up, and with the help of his shield, recovering ore was as easy as completing the first level of Super Mario with cheats.

_"This mine was abandoned — according to the elder of the nearby village. After the wave, no miners have dared to approach it, after hearing some kind of beastly noises from its direction…"_

At first, he thought it would be infested with monsters, and that was the reason why the miners were not coming back. But now, as they investigated the area beforehand and mining ore continuously, he was sure that there were no monsters around. They would've been attracted by the continuous noises he made while mining.

Chances are high that it was just the wind blowing through these empty tunnels and the paranoid villagers thought as the roars of monsters. Though with his luck... well, being ready for anything won't hurt.

_"Metal in the town is crazy expensive, and thanks to those charges the king circulated about me, it is kinda hard to find someone I can actually trade with… hell, every time I approach a trader, they either chase me away, calling me a 'rapist', or they simply apologize and recite the new decree that Aultcray guy brought forth!" _But unbeknownst to him, many of them were simply intimidated by King's intimidating expression and called for a guard in fright_. "Geez! They have no evidence and they'd believe a mentally ill woman's charges against logical arguments? This country is messed up! Haven't they heard of the phrase 'Innocent until proven guilty'?"_

Of course, as it was a kingdom he was in, not a democracy. How would they know about such a thing? In his sudden sourness, King almost forgot this sad fact. Still, it was like starting the game, and suddenly, he wasn't allowed to trade with the merchants in the starting city. One would obviously be pissed at that — or at the very least annoyed at it.

_"Well, I suppose it can't be helped. Even this idea to find ores to feed with the shield with only came up recently. After passing a cart full of ores, my shield started to glow like crazy! The same glow I receive near things that I can absorb with it."_

When he asked if he could buy some, he was immediately denied by the knights escorting the cart. Erhard also didn't want to sell him his own stock of ores in greater quantities due to the deficit of ores since the first wave hit.

_"It seems like the kingdom has started to buy up massive quantities, using it to make weapons and armor for the soldiers… it's crazy! It's like they were preparing for war!"_

Then again, fighting against a wave was bound to be an expensive endeavor. Also, the people's lack of willingness to return to the mine may have also played a great part in this situation.

_"Without people to work in the mines, the country can hardly produce the necessary amount of iron and steel. I wonder if this is the case for the surrounding countries too..."_

King often thought about how other countries would deal with this wave. But thinking about it, he came to the conclusion that they might also have their own heroes that they summoned if the need arisen.

_"Poor folks dragged away from home without any warning." _He could really feel their situation, seeing as he was in it at the moment.

It was just plain wrong, kidnapping others just like that. But thinking about it, desperate times called for desperate measures. He couldn't fully blame them for anything if he didn't even know of their situation.

Not to mention, King shouldn't really have a right to complain; as he's the one who always ran away when a stronger monster appeared, not other heroes. Back in his old world, he even left innocent civilians behind to save his hide. He couldn't do anything anyway.

_"I really am a pathetic guy, huh…"_

Offering a bitter smile, he continued his work, proceeding deeper and deeper in the cave to find more ores to mine.

In the end, there wasn't any more light from the outside of the cave, and the torches nearby, thus King switched the flashlight on his mobile, handing it to Raphtalia for her to hold it.

He disliked torches, there was no way he wanted to light himself on fire accidentally! Granted, with his ever-increasing defense, he might be able to shrug even that off, but he wasn't taking any chances. Especially since even if he would escape unharmed, he didn't want to end up burning his clothes.

"Umm… Lord King?"

"Yes?"

"What is it I am holding?" Raphtalia looked at the strange device she held in her hand, inspecting it with a confused gaze. Never had she seen a device like this before.

"A mobile?" King deadpanned, forgetting for a moment that the kid had never encountered modern technology before. She was from this world, after all. And they were so primitive that they didn't even have steam engines, let alone telephones, or smartphones!

In his world, even a toddler was given a smart device from their parents to play with. At four years old, kids were usually already more proficient at using such things than their parents who grew up without using such technology. Then again, learning how to do something when they were still in the learning stage would obviously make them much better at it than people who have long passed that time. It was like teaching them to walk or ride a bike. It would be like second nature to them.

It was strange that a girl at Raphtalia's age didn't know what it was.

"A mobile?"

"Ah, right! I almost forgot; you've probably never seen anything like it thing before. In short, it can be used to communicate with others from anywhere in the world. Well, others who have a similar device, anyway..."

Unfortunately, without cellular reception, satellites, or whatever the technology they used for this particular device to communicate, its main function was essentially moot.

"Ah, I see…" The girl hummed, ever more intrigued by the strange machinery in her hand. Such a small thing could emit light like a torch? She couldn't even see the fire, and even when she accidentally touched the glowing part, it wasn't as hot as fire would be!

"Of course, it has many other functions, like for example, a flashlight." King pointed at the brightly glowing screen of his phone. "Or it can store libraries' worth of knowledge, play various games and music, and many other things. Hell, it may as well function as a coffeemaker, with how convenient it is." As said, King was immensely satisfied with the basic functions, never really exploring all the functions Child Emperor and Metal Knight implemented in this crazy expensive stuff. Well, until he actually needed to use them — almost all the time for the past month. He had little to no idea how to start a fire with just two sticks. What kind of nonsense was that, rubbing two sticks until fire appeared? Where was the fuel? The dry grass?

"Oh!" The girl's eyes widened, turning the device around. "This little thing is capable of such amazing things? It is fueled by magic?"

King chuckled, lowering his pickaxe. "Better… science."

"Science?" The kid raised her head, confused.

What was this 'science' thing? Was that how they called magic from the Shield Hero's world? Or was it something else entirely? Whatever the case was, it sparked intrigued in her.

"Indeed… now then, can you please raise the…"

"Lo-Lord King…!" Raphtalia's tail stood up in fright, dropping the device on the ground.

**"Grrrr…"**

King's hair stood on end, his body slightly trembling. "...Something's behind me, isn't it?" Of course, he found himself in a situation like this. He even warned himself of something like this!

In a typical dark cave, a typical monster appeared behind his back. Why was the world always tossing him around with various situations? Why do such cliché situations only happen to him?

Slowly but firmly turning his head, behind him, a large, black dog stood, towering even above King. It's two heads stood out of the dark, its eyes glowing red.

"AHHHHHH!" King couldn't help but scream, after all, such a huge beast appearing behind him was startling, to say the least! Though in Raphtalia's eyes, he seemed to be battle-ready, hyping himself up with a war-cry.

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

**"Awoooo!"**

Instinctively, King raised his shield, only managing to block the beast's terrible attack by a hair, the dog gnawing on his sacred weapon relentlessly.

**"Grrrrr!"**

'Gnaw! Gnaw! Gnaw!'

_"Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!"_

Drool dripped over his hand as the beast's eyes met his, the second head fiercely trying to latch on his neck.

'Snap! Snap! Snap!'

_"Hey! Cut it out!"_

One head gnawed on his shield, the second head being held back by his other hand; King was in a tight situation. He was also disgusted by the foul breath and the drool of the creature that dripped over him.

"Dammit…!" Back then, his old self would have been overwhelmed by such a monster. Hell, he would have turned tail and run away at the moment such a beast appeared. Yet now, he was strangely standing firm, holding the beast back with his bare hands.

_"Maybe it's because the kid is behind me? Maybe it's because she said those words, I don't want to run away?"_

Or it was more likely that if he started to run, this half-ass Cerberus wannabe would jump on his back, and he would have no chance to defend himself!

_"My high defense might protect me from any critical damage. Still, there's no way I can get away unscathed from it…"_

...right? Actually, for how scary it looked, it wasn't as strong as he expected. He was managing to hold it back, despite being smaller than it.

Wait, now wasn't the time! He had to deal with it as soon as possible!

Needless to say, this monster would probably just pounce on Raphtalia once he turned tail. After all, she would seem to be easier prey. Turning back to check, Raphtalia was shivering in fear, rooted to the spot.

_"She's trembling a lot… I read once that predators aim for the weakest-looking prey, and also the ones that run away, as that would affirm that they are indeed weaker than themselves. In this scenario, I'm the more troublesome prey... so does that mean that it would aim after Raphtalia first?"_

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

Not daring to continue that train of thought, King's eyes met with the beast's, and his heart started to pump audibly. The beast seemed to hear it, and it confused it for a short while.

"Dammit!" Taking advantage of the small lapse of confusion the two-headed dog had, King punched the dog monster's face. King hoped that it would deal at least some form of damage, though he didn't expect much due to his reduced damage output-

Which was why when he managed to knock it back a considerable distance, he was somewhat surprised. Though immediately afterward, it only seemed to piss it off more.

**"GRRR!"**

King managed to stand his ground when the dog monster charged at him — mostly Raphtalia behind him — again, and this time, probably due to his newfound strength that came with his levels, he managed to stop the dog monster with his bare hands, his body not moving an inch. It felt almost the same as someone bumping into him. Which was surprising, considering how that 'bump' was a large two-headed dog which was larger than even he was charging in his direction. Was his defense really that high?

Pushing it back again, King then bashed one of the dog monster's heads with his shield, which caused it to whimper in pain.

"[Rope Shield]!" A shield forming a coiled rope appeared on his arm in the next moment, shooting forth a rope which he then used to entrap the beast, immobilizing it for a moment.

"Got you!" Under the passing weeks, King got more accustomed to using his shield. He wouldn't say he was any good at it, but he could say that he'd be able to do this much.

The beast trashed, entangling itself more and more, the rope hugging around one of its necks.

King used some more rope and threw a noose around a stable-looking stone pillar, trying to keep the beast as far from Raphtalia by pulling the rope towards him.

_"If I pull too hard, it'll just go around that pillar, and it will have the opportunity to rush towards Raphtalia! If I let it loose, it will escape anyway! Dammit!" _Thankfully, King was strong enough to handle this much, at least. If anything, the only problem he had was to control the amount of strength he was using. The dog monster was fully focused on escaping its binds, which made trying to incapacitate it temporarily a more troublesome endeavor than it should be.

One of the heads started to suffocate as the rope tightened around it, making the beast thrash around wildly and unpredictably. It was almost to the point it would've been able to free itself from his hold.

"A little help here?" King glanced back at the girl, hoping for some help from the only member of his party who could dish out some proper damage — even a sword in the girl's hands was a lot better than King using his fists — no matter how much higher-leveled he was compared to her, yet, the girl was still trembling, rooted to the spot.

Raphtalia was still frozen, trembling behind King, holding her weapon unsteadily. "Mo-Mom! Da-Dad..! Ahhhhh!" Once more, her traumatic experiences overcame the girl, the monster making her remember her parents who were killed by a similar nightmarish creature.

"Ahhhh!"

Raphtalia collapsed, grabbing her head. She could only scream hysterically!

This, of course, agitated the two-headed dog, trying ever harder to push through its bonds and free itself from the hold of the rope.

**"GRRRRRR!"**

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

_"Shit! And when I thought she already got used to fighting and overcame her fears. Now, she's frozen over again! Dammit! That's my luck!"_ Clenching his rope tighter, King clenched his teeth as he kept the dog in place as best he could._ "You stupid dog, don't pull that hard!"_

King tightened his grip, trying to balance his strength with the rope originating from his shield, thinking about how cliché his situation is.

A dark mine that was abandoned for some time.

The villagers warned the adventurers. Yet, after the adventurers find nothing that infers to the existence of monsters in the cave — at first —they dismiss the warning of the locals, starting to delve deeper and collecting materials.

And just when they put their guard down, the monster appeared out of nowhere!

_"It's almost like the writing of a game. The villagers warn the hero who goes to investigate the cave. Everything is too calm. Then, at the worst possible moment, the monster appears._ Sigh…_ such a cliched and unlucky event can only happen to me, it's too obvious at this point…"_

King hated it! Worse, with his luck, he'd likely face similar events in the future!

The girl frozen behind his back was the evidence. He was too careless! He needed to be more careful in the future! His sense of danger had already thinned enough thanks to his raised levels! Granted, it meant he could just ignore smaller monsters, and that was the truth. Even for this scary dog monster, his physical strength was probably above it — with how easily he managed to push it back.

Still, if growing stronger meant that he could potentially be killed thanks to his dulled sense of danger; then he would rather remain weak and survive!

_"But what to do? I can't kill this monster with my low attack power. At most, I can wound it, but that's not enough. I can bash it continuously with my shield, but its aim is now Raphtalia, the easiest prey in its eyes. I might not be able to save her in time. Even if the girl's safety isn't a worry right now, it'd take a considerable amount of time to get rid of this thing! Suffocating it is an option, but running away? If it was only me, then sure. But with Raphtalia here... If I loosen this rope for even for a moment, this beast might free itself and latch on Raphtalia immediately! She's evidently too scared even to move right now! Gah! What's with me? I need to save her right now! If I can't even save a little kid after getting stronger, I don't deserve to be a hero!"_

"It's fine…" Gathering his courage, King muttered, loud enough for Raphtalia to hear. Even he couldn't believe he was saying something like this.

**[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]**

**"Grrr!"**

The beast gathered the last vestiges of its strength and started to push against King's iron hold; the stone pillar King threw around the noose beginning to crack.

'Crack!'

If that small stone pillar breaks, the beast would regain its freedom and gain the chance to attack Raphtalia!

The creature was so desperate that it started to ignore its other suffocating head just to reach King and bite him, even though it was futile! On top of this, as the adrenaline coursed through its veins, the muscles of its neck tightened, making the rope suffocating effect less effective as its muscles pushed against it.

Though it was a mindless monster, there was only one real thing on its mind — survive! It would run out and escape — but not without securing the smaller prey, first. It needed to eat to survive- and King was not prey.

"I don't want you to get hurt…"

Forcing a nervous smile, King looked back at the girl, seeing that it was unlikely Raphtalia could help him out at the moment.

His muscles were aching — trying to control his strength was tiring! It was even more so than just using all of his strength! But he couldn't just do that — otherwise, it'd break the stone pillar holding the dog back, and if it freed itself, Raphtalia's fate was sealed. Her life would literally depend on him — if she didn't get up right now!

"Huh? Lord King?" Raphtalia stopped trembling, lowering her hands from her head, as she noticed how King was holding the monster back. "Bu-But… If I leave you behind…" No! That can't be! She'd be all alone again! She doesn't want to get abandoned again! Not again!

"If you can't help, that's fine. But you need to decide quickly. Remaining here is too dangerous. I can't deal with the monster and protect you at once. I understand you suffered some trauma in the past. But you need to overcome it, or this fear may potentially kill both of us in the future."

'Crack!' The stone the noose was entangled around cracked once more, only a little more, and it would break!

**"GRRR!" **The two-headed dog fumed in a berserk state, even releasing some steam from its mouths, eyes burning with sheer determination to escape!

"I don't blame you if you want to run away now. I can understand your current situation. But you have to act fast. I don't think I can hold it back for much longer, so you have to choose! Help me, or run away. Either pick up your sword and stab it or run away and leave it to me!"

King couldn't help but feel bad saying this. The kid was already trembling in fear. In her stead, he would have run away long ago or died on the spot from a heart attack.

Nonetheless, he had to act fast. If she didn't attack it quickly — or run away, she was dead meat. With how it was positioned, the beast would pounce on Raphtalia- and King wouldn't be able to move fast enough to move between them to stop it!

He had no idea how long he could hold this thing back, or how to even deal with it with his pathetically low attack power. But one thing he was sure, he couldn't do that and protect the girl all at once! That was too much of a challenge!

_"I'm not sure if I can even escape alive if it ends up biting my neck…"_

This beast was a lot stronger than the ones he met previously. His defense might be high, but without attack power, it was questionable how he will deal with this thing. He might have to bash it until it was dead. Due to his high level, it might not take all that long — but it would definitely be too long at the moment! If he was alone, then yes, it was doable. Needing to protect the girl at the same time? Yeah, no. He'd rather escape with the both of them still alive before dealing with that thing.

But how long would it take to get rid of it? He'd only be able to use his fists or his shield as an actual weapon, and even then it'd take too long!

_"Every weapon I've tried to use until now has always automatically been repelled by my shield. Even when I tried to use simple tools like pickaxes as weapons, it seems that this stupid shield attached to me can detect my intent to use them as a weapon and make them fly out from my hand. HOW SHITTY IS THIS SYSTEM!? Even the tank classes in most MMORPGs had a weapon to deal damage with, like a lance, or a shortsword. Never have I ever heard of a shield-class that didn't allow for the use of weapons! What did they think they would attack with?!"_

"…" The girl just stared at King blankly for long moments, gulping hard, filled with fear. Unsure of how to proceed, she turned to her only pillar of support. "Lo-Lord Ki…"

'Crack! Crack!' The small stone pillar was about to break at any moment. Only a little bit more, and the beast would break loose!

"IF YOU CAN'T ATTACK IT THEN RUN! I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH LONGER I CAN HOLD IT!"

This was it! He had no other choice but to shout at the girl.

She would be either shocked out from her trance and move away from danger, and if she didn't, then he would be forced to try some more extreme measures to get her out of the way.

'Break!'

**"GRRRR! Guahhh!" **Finally, the stone pillar broke, and the beast escaped the tight bindings of the rope it was entangled with, as it pounced towards Raphtalia.

"Shit! [Air Strike Shield]!"

Activating a skill, it formed a translucent defensive barrier before Raphtalia— The beast, repelled by the ability due to its sudden appearance, fell to the ground.

**"Grrr! Awooo!"**

The two-headed dog, pumped full of adrenaline after struggling to escape the bindings of the rope, the monster turned to its attacker, rushing towards King in a renewed frenzy.

_"This is bad!"_

Casting another translucent defensive barrier before him, the beast charged headfirst into the barrier, stunning itself. Taking advantage of the current situation, King's mind raced to find a solution — and it found one. One so inane and ridiculous that he didn't even consider it.

Backing up away from the dog monster, when it got up, it charged towards King once more. But what King did...

"Ahhhhhh!"

...was charge directly at the monster, his shield morphing to the [Warthog Shield], increasing his thorn damage and charge speed. With a mighty charge, King managed to knock the giant dog back, the monster impacting the cavern wall.

Before it managed to stabilize itself, King was already backing up, readying another charge. The beast didn't even notice King ramming into it as King used his body as a battering ram.

"_Looks like all that excess defense was useful after all!"_ King thought, almost crying in joy, preparing to charge at it again. It seemed like a stupid action, but it was the only one that seemed to be damaging the dog monster enough. And the fact that it was damaging it was the only thing that prompted King to repeat the action.

After not being able to properly attack anything... to finally deal considerable damage on his own against other mobs that aren't level 1 fodder was, to say the least...

_exhilarating._

Charge after charge, King slammed into the monster again and again, with every charge deepening the cracks on the wall. After the tenth or so charge, did King stop, noticing that the two-headed dog barely seemed alive anymore.

But due to charging against it constantly for over ten times, King was tired. He wasn't as exhausted as the time he ran around the starter field, running for his life from the literal flood of balloon monsters, but he was tired nonetheless.

"_Phew_…That's that sorted…" King leaned against the cavern wall, sighing. Looking at Raphtalia, she seemed to still be rooted to the spot.

"...Hey, you still there?" King asked, shaking the girl out of her stupor.

"W-What? L-Lord King! I-I..." Raphtalia stammered, unsure how to respond. When the Shield Hero held the monster back, she curled up into a ball and cried. When he was struggling against the monster, she simply stood there. Even when he protected her and faced it head-on, she did nothing but watch as he fought the beast from start to finish. Did the Shield Hero even need her at all? What if he decided to abandon her? She was utterly worthless this time around! Even without a weapon, the Shield Hero was as — if not more lethal than her, even with a sword in her hands!

"...I'm sorry." Was all King had to say to Raphtalia.

"I'm sorry! I couldn't even- wait, what?" Raphtalia asked, unsure if she heard him right.

"I'm sorry about that. I couldn't protect you properly." King apologized to her, a sad expression on his face.

What? Fail to protect her? She wasn't even harmed at all! If anything, she failed to be his weapon! The only real way she could help him!

"I shouldn't have expected you to be able to handle it that well in the first place." King patted her on the head. "You know, for someone your age, you held up pretty well against a monster like that."

"B-but! I couldn't even help you! I was completely useless! I didn't even do anything! I just ended up hindering you!" Raphtalia said, utterly confused. She did literally nothing. Why did King even say that?

"It's alright, kid. It's perfectly natural to freeze up upon seeing something scary for the first time. Here, let me tell you something." King said, making Raphtalia look at him.

Though his face was scary, at that moment... he didn't seem like anyone other than a caring guardian looking over a child.

"When things go South, it's okay to run away."

Though his words were wise... his mind was elsewhere.

"_I'm getting more and more natural and stealing quotes from manga... _sigh... _which one did I even take this one from this time?"_

"Well then, let's get out of here. I think we've collected enough ore for today-"

"Lord King, behind you!"

Barely turning fast enough, King had to resort to using his shield... and his other arm to block the bite of the two-headed dog.

Somehow, despite charging into the dog constantly, it seemed to attack with a lot more vigor this time around! It was as if it took all of its reserve energy and risked them all on one final attack.

"L-Lord King! Your arm!" Raphtalia noticed the second head gnawing on King's other arm.

"It's fine. It's my fault for not ensuring that it's dead. Remember what I said!" King turned around, a frantic look in his eyes. "Remember what I told you! Run away! I can deal with it myself!"

"B-but..." Suddenly, Raphtalia remembered that night! Her parents! How she lost everything in less than a moment!

That dark place that came to her mind was her 'home' after that… the slavers who captured her and forced her to endure untold suffering!

"No…"

She couldn't bear to see this anymore! She didn't want to go back! Not anymore!

"Raphtalia… RUN!"

At that moment, something broke in the girl. Something broke the dam that held her back to defend what was important to her! Something that made her hesitate, that paralyzed her for so long, had disappeared!

**"GRRRR!"**

At the moment, the second head that was gnawing on King's arm let go of it, and the beast's second head lunged towards him, aiming for his neck!

"Shit!"

"DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE! NOT ANYMORE! NOT ANYMORE! AHHHHHHH!" Abandoning all reason behind, Raphtalia charged forth, pushing her sword deep into the head of the beast that was about to bite King.

In her eyes, the light of desperation and craze lit anew, filling her with the determination to protect what was important to her!

**"GUAAHHHH!" **The beast lost its balance as it fell on the ground in fright and pain, starting to struggle and squirm as one of its eye sockets was penetrated by the blade, reaching one of its brains and piercing it.

Immediately, one of the heads fell limp, leaving the other with distorted bodily control.

'Stab! Stab! Stab! Stab!'

"Don't leave me alone! Don't leave me alone! Don't leave me alone…" Again and again, with a crazed fearlessness, the girl stabbed the monster! Again and again, repeating her mantra, ignoring the scratches she got from frantically stabbing the dog monster.

**"Guhhh…"**

"Don't leave me alone…! Don't leave me alone! Don't leave me alone… Don't leave me alone…!"

Even after it had long since died, even after one of its necks became a bloody pulp full with holes, she continued stabbing the monster, not stopping!

Meanwhile, King was stunned by the girl's action; Unsure what happened to her all of a sudden. Only after regaining his composure, he hurried to the girl to check if she was alright or not.

The man placed his hand on her shoulder, but it seems that her trance was too deep to stop her by just touching her shoulder.

"Raphtalia… RAPHTALIA!" Only after shaking her a few times helped, stopping her crazed state, as she noticed the Shield Hero's concerned face.

"I-I…"

"It's over…"

"Over?" She blinked, still not comprehending that she had killed the monster.

"Yes, you did well. You managed to fight it after all. Are you alright?" Raphtalia was covered with blood, but aside from a few scratches, she was not injured. King was glad that nothing dangerous happened. She was reckless, too reckless, even for a kid.

_"She's covered in blood; she needs a thorough bath after this…"_

"I-I…" Tears gathered in the girl's eyes, as she buried her face in King's chest. "Don't leave me… I don't want to be left behind again! Please! Don't leave me again, father..."

Father? What is she going on about? He wasn't her father! Does it have something to do with something she experienced some time ago?

_"Hmm... What kind of trauma did she have before this?"_ But what was he to do with a traumatized child? King was no psychiatrist to help her deal with it. Nor did he have any idea how to deal with children. When he was a teenager, he once babysat a cousin of his for some pocket money, but after seven dirty diapers, a burnt lasagna, and a nearly-shattered TV... let's just say King never babysat anyone afterwards. Nor did he have the gall to meet her at the family reunions after.

He thought by simply encouraging her to be able to face monsters head-on or being more confident would be enough to solve her problems with killing monsters. But this?

He just wasn't sure anymore. This kid needed serious counseling after seeing her like this. Something broke in her; something an inexperienced individual like him couldn't really help with. Or it was his fault pushing her too hard? Yeah, it was probably that…

Getting a ten-year-old kid to go out and fight monsters with him day in day out? He would be surprised if he didn't get arrested immediately upon returning to his old world, if they found out about what he did to her.

_"Just as suspected… I don't have the qualifications to raise a child…" _He told himself the same thing from the beginning, and now, it showed.

He was the last person someone should entrust a child to. But what should he do now? She was already in his care; moreover, calling him 'father' — which was probably the last on the list of things he could be, right below a family man and a hero worthy of his S-Class status.

All of this made him wonder if he was up to the task in the first place. But even then, he couldn't just run away this time. If he abandoned her after all of this, that would not just be cruel, it would be plain wrong.

Thus, King did the only thing that was sensible in the current situation — the only thing that came to his mind after seeing all those films with 'kid plot'.

"Don't worry…" he hugged her with one arm, caressing her hair. "I won't abandon you, I promise."

It was kinda lame, and cliche to say such a thing, befitting the plot of a typical hero story. But then again, what could he do? Tell her that he was not up for the task? Even King wouldn't be that cruel. Also, most animes and manga that he read before told him that this was the best way to comfort a broken child.

"Lo-Lord King?"

"I told you, didn't I?" King forced a smile, trying to look trustworthy. "A promise is a promise. I won't leave you. Let's grow strong together. Let's work hard to prevent other children from feeling sad." With that, he showed a thumbs up to the girl, filling her with hope.

Raphtalia's eyes turned teary once again, burying her face in King's chest. "Thank you! I will not let you down, Lord King! I'll work hard! I'll become your sword to save others from grief!"

_"Mother! Father! The Shield hero truly is like in the stories! And I will be traveling with him! Yes, I will prevent something similar happen to other people! I will save them! I will be fine, you don't need to worry about me! Not anymore…" _Meanwhile, as Raphtalia had an inner monologue; something else entirely ran through King's mind at this moment.

"Sigh!_ How bothersome! I just want to go home… where is the Heroes Association when you needed them?"_

Though unreasonable to expect them to just save him from another world, he couldn't help but think that.

Dismissing such a thought, the duo had enough excitement for the day. Collecting the loot from the two-headed dog and picking up King's strangely intact phone, the two retreated for the day.

* * *

**Scene Change: Capital: A little less than two weeks later:**

The above scene had happened near the beginning of their adventure, and as some time passed, when the two of them visited the good blacksmith once again, Erhard blinked, watching the 'changed' girl with wide eyes.

"Damn! I barely even recognized you!" Erhard blinked, looking at the matured Raphtalia. "It's been a while since I've seen you. You grew quite a lot, even for a demi-human! I bet this ruffian's been pushing you a lot. I'd say you've been fighting non-stop from dawn until dusk, with that much growth!"

"Ah, it's not that bad. Lord King is doing his best to protect me; and in exchange, I do my best to help him." The girl smiled confidently and happily, nodding, remembering her time spent with the man. Even her bushy tail started to wag in happiness.

"Well, she eats a lot more recently..." Muttered King, slightly downtrodden. His already-thin purse was suffering from the girl's newfound gluttony. Then again, she was a 10-year old girl last time. Now? Well, she's probably still ten years old, but she looked like a teenager that was in the midst of puberty. It only made sense that her appetite grew with her body.

"Yo-You make it sound like I grew fatter!" Raphtalia started to stutter, covering her body in embarrassment.

"I didn't mean that, I just said you started to grow into your clothes, that's all!"

"Lord King! You embarrass me!"

"Fine, fine! I won't mention it. Hmph, she's becoming stubborn, recently." Sighing, King started to browse the wares, still mumbling indignantly, leaving Erhard and Raphtalia alone for a moment to catch up.

"Hmm…" Erhard looked suspicious, leaning closer to Raphtalia now as they had a moderate amount of privacy. "Well, I hope he didn't do anything inappropriate with you. If he did…" The man pulled his collar uneasily and cleared his throat before continuing. "…Tell old Erhard, and I'll make sure this guy won't do that again."

"You know I can hear you…" Behind them, King muttered unhappily, even his mere presence was pressuring and menacing. Even more so than usual, as he gained a moderately-sized beard over the passing weeks, which just gave his face another intimidating quality.

"Ah! I didn't mean it like that!" Erhard jumped straight up, laughing, scratching the back of his head nervously. "I was just worried about the kid. Just by looking at her, it's evident you've been pushing her hard."

"Is that so?" King glanced at Raphtalia slowly.

"Yeah, I hope you didn't do anything bad with her."

"Nothing illegal, I assure you…"

"That didn't sound too convincing." Sweat-dropped Erhard.

Indeed, the shadows drooped over King's expression made him unusually unnerving, even compared to his usual state. If anyone watched him now, they would say he was a shady figure, either a hardened mercenary or a deadly assassin.

"Excuse me then…" Hummed King in the end. "I'll try to be more convincing next time."

"Right…" King was not convincing at all; Instead, saying things like this just made him look even more suspicious.

"Lord King! We talked about this! You always scare away the people we might be able to do business with!"

"But I didn't do anything wrong… what's your problem this time?" Seriously! Day after day, the girl started to grow more and more stubborn, demanding, and as well as annoying!

"Grrr!" The girl pouted, looking away, a little bit offended at King's retort.

_"It's like she's growing to be like one of those girlfriends from those kinds of movies and media. They try to control how you act and what to do! Man! I miss the Doki-Doki series! Those girls are miles less demanding than the type she's starting to grow into!"_

Just yesterday, she started to argue with a trader who refused to do business with them. It was really embarrassing, as well as unnerving how headstrong she became. From a timid ten-year-old girl to this willful, stubborn, headstrong woman? It was scary how fast she changed.

_"Poor guy… he, and many other traders already made it clear to us! It's the order of that king. He's just a trader; he's only following the regulations. What's her problem?"_

In the worst-case scenario, he could always trade with that shady slave trader guy — he honestly forgot his name. Bellow-something, or whatever. To be truthful, that place would be the last place he would go to, but it was better than leaving his potions and collected stuff lying around unused, or the case of a few ingredients gone bad.

_"I am sure he would be willing to buy up my stock for a generous amount. Despite being a slave trader, he looked like a businessman who would rather not cheat on his customers."_

King watched Raphtalia walk a little bit farther, starting to inspect the wares after finishing her little story time with Erhard.

"I see your hands are full…"

_"Sigh!_ Don't even mention it." Once more, King sighed, slightly exhausted.

Day after day, his wish to go home grew ever more intensely. Looking at the girl who browsed the wares, he was not sure how long he could bear with this situation.

More so, he greatly missed his games and modern comforts. He couldn't even shave normally since coming here.

_"I want a proper shaver… this beard is starting to become bothersome." _Caressing it, he really disliked this rough feeling on his face. He couldn't even grab a dagger to shave, dammit! That stupid 'curse' on his shield only made things more and more annoying!

"But damn! She became quite the looker." His train of thought was disturbed by Erhard, grinning like he saw something- or in this case, someone impressive.

"Yes, I can tell. I recognized it already." When Erhard first said she would grow into those clothes, he thought she would've needed at least a few extra years — in the fastest scenario, a year. But this? Barely a few weeks in and she 'evolved' from a girl into an adult woman? This was an absolutely ridiculous growth rate! What was she? A Pokemon or something?!

"_Or at least a woman in her late teens…" _King was dense but he wasn't blind; he recognized her developing feminine form, as well as how much her height grew since the time they trained and hunted monsters together — As well as… _cough cough_… rounding up on the front and backside a great amount.

_"That's why it's so weird! There are games where the goal was to capture monsters, then evolve them into a bigger and more powerful form. But this? It's so weird, seeing her growing up in no time! I feel old! Yeah, just looking at a ten-year-old girl grow into a busty teenager makes me feel like I actually grew that much older, too!"_

King honestly felt uncomfortable. He knows perfectly well that she is still around the age of ten, yet, she looks like a woman that was about to reach adulthood!

If you asked him, it was unnatural how all those people on the street looked at her like a bunch of wolves eyeing a fat piece of meat since she grew to be like… this! Knowing her age, it was even weirder! He was at the point he started to consider people who looked at her 'that way' were the same as pedophiles who liked small children.

_"Even more so, I used to play dating simulators that had capture targets just as young — or even younger than her! Granted, some of them were just cyborgs that were technically created just those many years ago, but still, what the hell's happening to me?!"_

He had no idea, and it was scary. It was like his old Otaku self was starting to transform something more 'fatherly'. Like a parent who was afraid of creeps — like himself right now — putting their hands on his daughter.

"So… Ahem! What can I do for you two?" Once again, Erhard disturbed his thinking, and King right away recognized how Raphtalia grabbed his arm, squeezing it to her chest.

_"WEIRD!" _It made him extra uncomfortable despite the pillow-like surface that pushed against his arm.

"We…"

"We came to buy Lord King some new protective gear!"

Once again, this girl took the words out of his mouth! He needed to be careful, otherwise, she might end up being the controlling-type! He had to put a stop to that if he could!

"Well, yeah…" The chain-mail King bought at the beginning of his 'adventurer' here might do; still, he didn't want to risk getting hurt. It was better to be safe than sorry and buy better armor before the wave hits.

He even collected a respectable amount of ingredients and ore. Maybe Erhard could make something nice for them.

_"The wave is coming; I can't risk it. One should always upgrade and repair their gear before going into the boss fight…"_

Unless it was a 'no gear' run he'd attempt as a challenge, this was not only considered common-sense, but it was also what was expected! No one entered a war without ensuring they had enough bullets for their gun, and this was the same thing. He'd be damned if he didn't take every fight seriously.

"Also, we need something better suited to her, too."

"Wha…What's the problem with my gear?!" the girl started to blush intensely, covering her body. It was almost like she didn't want better gear, however strange that sounded.

"...as I said earlier, we need something to protect her, too. Something that would possibly allow her to keep her agility, but would be strong enough to protect her in the coming wave. If you have a good sword for her, that would be good too. With her growth now, the shortsword she has now is no longer suitable for her."

Since she grew to be like this, King recognized how her shortsword was no longer as useful as before. Still, he wouldn't complain if she kept it as a backup weapon. Even if she lost her sword somehow, she could at least defend herself that way.

A longer but still reasonably-balanced weapon would help her immensely, allowing her to use her bigger body more effectively with a greater reach. Not to mention, generally, the longer the sword, the more powerful the whole strike. But that wasn't always the case. A longsword was incomparable to a katana, despite its reach.

"Got it!" Erhard flashed a smile, offering a thumbs up.

"Any specific requests you have in mind?"

"Well… I want something that offers a modest amount of protection, but would allow me to move freely. My defense is high, but I don't want to get injured either."

"Then some chainmail again?"

"I thought about something different…"

"Oh! I see. Interesting. Well, I am open to ideas. Tell me what you want, and old Erhard'll do what he can!"

"Thank you…"

King hummed, explaining the details to the man — Asking for corrections if needed.

Unfortunately, aside from his common sense — which many people in this world could really use — and gaming knowledge, he had little-to-no experience with armors, medieval weaponry, and or various different gadgets. He needed to rely on professionals like Erhard to fulfill his needs and correct his mistakes.

"Got it!" Nodded the man with a smile after King explained what he wanted.

He had a few ridiculous ideas, but most of what he described was approved by Erhard. He was like a kid, listening to King with a grin and shining eyes.

_"Maybe I went into quite a bit of detail… and maybe some of these things aren't possible here for the moment. Still, I had to ask to be sure…"_

"You have quite some interesting ideas about armors and various gadgets. I've never heard about others trying such a thing before. I like it! Say, you sure you aren't fellow armorsmith or some kind of inventor?" Erhard asked in the end, grinning with dangerously shining eyes.

"Never tried it…" King deadpanned. The last time he tried to fix something in his home, he hit his finger with a hammer; and since then, he'd rather call someone else to fix things for him.

"Mind if I steal some of these ideas? Of course, I am willing to pay for them if needed."

"Go ahead…" King didn't want to sound greedy.

Of course, he could've asked for 'royalties' for these 'new' design ideas he gave Erhard. But one; he was the only blacksmith who was willing to do business with them and was actually a decent person.

Two, he worked for a great price.

Three, in his old world, all of these 'ideas' either were common sense, historically proven to work, or could simply be found in different RPG games or fantasy novels, and thus, was no secret at all, but rather widespread knowledge.

"Great! But nonetheless, I'll give you a discount for all future purchases, as that's the least I can do for you…"

"Thank you."

"Of course!"

"By the way… How much are you willing to buy this armor back for? Last time, you said that you were willing to buy it back for around 100 silver." It suddenly just came to King's mind. He didn't want to carry around excess armor he wouldn't even use any more. Rather than that, he'd sell it back to Erhard, so it'd lower the cost of the armor he described to Erhard later.

He already suspected that the things he asked for would cost a hefty sum.

"Eh… I'd give eighty for it, considering you've been using it for some time."

"Ninety-five…"

"Ninety, and that's my last offer!"

"Deal."

It was around a month since he bought this chainmail, and it served its purpose nicely — not like he really received a lot of damage, as that was a miracle in itself, but King had a hunch he needed more protection against the coming wave or something really bad might happen.

An armor that was custom made for his needs, offering as much protection as possible while also keeping his agility intact to provide a steady speed for escape... Yeah, that was what he wanted! Unfortunately, the two qualities were usually mutually exclusive, and even if one was made, it could hardly be maintained and equalized at a practical level.

It already existed in his old world, in the form of bulletproof vests and even bulletproof suits, and there was one thing he once saw Child Emperor working on, some sort of energy shield and some shock-absorption armor that was as thin as a wetsuit. But he was in a world where there was only medieval-level technology at their disposal, and he had to utilize them at their fullest — or die without any proper form of armor.

_"I've seen how many gadgets and weapons Child Emperor's backpack had once… Dammit! I really want something like that with me right now!"_

But in a medieval environment and with such technology he can find around at the moment, King doubted it was even possible to create even a fraction of what his world had, and such, he had to make do with what he had here.

_"Even my mobile is seen as some kind of miraculous magic device here. Which makes sense, seeing as they seem to not have anything close to any form of modern technology. Even the steam engine hasn't been invented here! Hoping that they have something like modern alloys and forging techniques, or integrated gadgets is a pipe dream. Well, a man can dream. At least they have magic…_ Sigh!_ I hate being here so much! If there is a god that is responsible for what's happening now, he or she must really like seeing me suffer."_

Nonetheless, he described his ideas about modern armors and integrated gadgets as best he could to Erhard. Hopefully, the man could come up with something usable.

_"In a game, only stats really mattered. The aesthetics and the actual logical viability of the said equipment or armor would be secondary. For example, I've never seen a two-handed weapon larger than its wielder, neither are there armors that are capable of blocking explosions point-blank- and crushing the wearer by its sheer weight…"_

Unfortunately, he was well too aware that this was not a game.

Looks were only secondary compared to function, and thus, King needed to focus on listing only things to the blacksmith that was somewhat possible — with the current technology and tools — He had to be realistic- there was no way Erhard could create a bulletproof vest or anti-shrapnel plating. He's been one of- if not the most helpful people so far to him the entire time he's been here.

Well, Raphtalia was a given. She was literally the only person he could count on to deal damage.

_"It's better to be prepared for every possible scenario rather than getting caught off guard. Still, one shouldn't distance oneself from reality. One should only focus on what is possible, and ignore all unrealistic options." _Before the wave starts, he also wanted to make some more potions and buy some more high-grade ones from the pharmacist. Who knows when he'd need to use them? King feared that even with all his preparations, they might not survive the coming dread. Also, even if he had an immense amount of defense, who knows if there existed an enemy that could ignore his defense. If there was... well, then he was screwed.

"It'll be done soon! Come back in a few hours, and I'll see what I can do." Erhard hummed, making calculations in his head. "It would be bad if you two go against the calamity unprepared, especially when it is so close."

"Hmm…" A few hours? That was quite fast! Didn't forging armors take days of work? I suppose Erhard was indeed worthy of being the best blacksmith in the kingdom! Nonetheless, King had a few more things to take care of, so these few free hours came in handy.

"We're counting on you."

"Got it!"

"Speaking of which…" One more thing came in King's mind.

"Yes?"

"How do you people know how long until that 'wave' arrives? How do you know where and when it will strike?" It was a good question; he was still clueless on where and when exactly the wave arrives.

When he was dragged away to this world, the people mentioned a one-month deadline. How did they know about it? He had no idea. A device of sorts? Or was there a specific time between the waves?

If his calculations were correct, then they only had around a day or two — or even less — before that wave hits, and he had no idea where it would pop up and appear.

He only knows what he heard. "One month… " And that was it!

_"If I don't know where to go, or when, no matter how prepared I am, I can't fight that thing…" _Though he'd rather avoid a confrontation with the monsters that wiped out the adventurers and almost swallowed a whole army that this country sent against it, but if he or the other heroes didn't fight against this calamity, then who would stop it?

If the heroes run and hide, who will stay and fight?

Now King REALLY started to feel the burden that the proper heroes of the Heroes Association face day after day.

One always had to be prepared, always watching out for a possible monster attack. It was stressful, and it was also a responsibility he'd rather hand over someone more prepared or more responsible personnel.

_"How those other three heroes treated the information on the first day, I doubt they're taking this threat seriously — most likely still thinking that this is some kind of game. Let's hope they realized the seriousness of the situation and prepared for the coming catastrophe in the passing month. At least as much as I did…"_

If not, he doubted that even with this shield; he could do much at all — more so because he ONLY had this shield, and he himself had limited attacking capability. Any other weapon would've been welcomed! A mace, a morning star, hell, a dagger would've been better than nothing!

True, Raphtalia became much more confident and skillful with her sword since they started traveling together. Even so, she was just one girl — an underage girl, no less — even she couldn't fight a whole army alone. Well, until one got stronger and stronger, but they weren't at that point yet.

_"Needless to say, I already feel bad. I have to rely on her when it comes to combat. I don't know how I would be able to live with myself if she died or get harmed because I failed to protect her."_

It was against his morals in the first place, letting her fight; nonetheless, he had no other choice but to go along with her request and allow her to become his 'sword' — as she started to call herself.

_"As time passes and she grew in size, she became more and more insistent and stubborn. Saying, 'I want to be the Shield Hero's sword! I want to protect the weak and never let other children suffer the same fate as me!' She's just like an annoying sidekick in a lame RPG! She's incredibly useful as she's my only way of attacking something, but she's starting to grow annoying as I proceed through the game."_

It was weird enough that she grew up to be an adult woman so fast, but this? King feared that if he wasn't careful, she would end up growing to be the bossy, stubborn type. Honestly, he'd have preferred if she remained smaller — and more obedient. The less clingy she was, the better. It didn't matter how weird it was to have a small kid by his side constantly, the way she was acting right now was just uncomfortable for him!

"Lord King?" Raphtalia yanked King's chainmail a few times, making him come back to reality.

"Hmm? What?"

"You spaced out again…" It happened sometimes. The girl had no idea what the Shield Hero thought about during his small 'moments' of blank periods, but she was sure it was something grand; things befitting of a great hero like him!

"Ah, sorry… what were we talking about?"

_"Sigh!_ I just asked you: Did no one tell you about the dragon hourglass?" The blacksmith made him remember what he was asking about.

"What hourglass?" What was this guy speaking about? What Dragon Hourglass?

"Strange…" Erhard scratched his bald head, finding it strange that no one told King about the device, which amongst many other functions, could tell the exact time the waves hit. "How come no one ever told you about it?"

"I still have no clue what you're talking about…"

"Well, let me explain then." Erhard cleared his throat. "As I heard, there is a church in the town square where you can see a clock tower. There is something there called the "Hourglass of the Dragon's Era". When all of the sand in the hourglass falls down, I heard that the heroes and their comrades would be transported to the place where the calamity will take place…"

"I see…" King sighed, depressed. Great, and no one told him about this crucial information. Why was he even surprised? Since his arrival here, most of the people were unfriendly with him, and some even tried to rob him.

_"I'm somewhat accustomed to this by now. But to not tell me such vital information? This is a little bit much!"_

At least the Heroes Association always notified him if a dangerous monster detected and popped up in his town. Granted, that was because he had his status as an S-Class hero, but still! As one of the 'legendary four heroes', shouldn't he have been entitled to the information about the wave, at least?!

When he was summoned, the people around him mentioned there was only one month before the wave came, and so he counted down the days until a month passed_. "In truth, I even set up a memo on my phone to keep track of time. I have a rough idea of when it will start, but I have no concrete idea about precisely when or where it will strike. The existence of such an item explains how people of this place know how much time is left…"_

"So… you say that hourglass is in that creepy church?" He passed by that building when he was in the capital last time. It was hard to miss, considering it was in a public place and towered above all other buildings in the area.

_"Just like the churches of my world…" _Even his world had something like a religion, a thing he'd rather not get involved in due to how many sects were popping up recently thanks to the constantly present monster threat and the constant fear and pressure people lived in because of them.

King himself never bothered to know if there was any higher power out there or not.

It was enough to worry about the randomly appearing monsters; he didn't need the attention of an even more powerful — or even more monstrous being.

But if there was a god out there, then that God was most likely making fun of him, putting him in such ridiculously dangerous situations all the time. Either that God really liked seeing him suffer, or that they really didn't like him.

"Creepy?" Raphtalia and Erhard blinked, looking at each other at once. What did the Shield Hero mean by 'creepy'?

"Nothing…" King would rather not elaborate on it further. He already had a bad feeling about that place.

_"Those priests and nuns that hang around in such places are just creepy…"_

Like everything, he found them suspicious, and he'd preferably not mix with people like them.

_"Not to mention, in games and movies, churches are the nests of ancient demons and hidden sects and the like… it is actually rare that a church is just a normal church and not some monster nest or that it contained a gateway to the underworld in its basement..."_

"So, is there anything else you need?"

"Nothing else, just the gear we discussed earlier."

"Okay, then! Come back in a few hours, and I should have most of the things you requested ready. The rest? Well, let's just say I'll work as fast as possible. Some of the designs you mentioned might take a few days, or they might not even possible with my current tools and knowledge. Nonetheless, I'll do my best."

"Okay, thanks." King offered a small smile, nodding to the first person who was genuinely nice to him since coming here. Granted, he believed the rumor at first, before he slowly believed that King was just falsely accused.

"Bye!" Raphtalia waved cheerfully, and with that, King and Raphtalia left, leaving Erhard alone.

"Let's hope he'll be able to save the people from this terrible wave. Hell, this country needs some real heroes, now more than ever." Erhard also returned to his work, working as fast as possible to prepare the Shield Hero's new gear.

He would surely need it to fight against the wave. As a professional, his pride would only allow him to create the best, and nothing else!

That day, the blacksmith called Erhard worked his hardest to create what was most likely his finest work!

* * *

**Scene Change: The Streets: Little bit later:**

"Grrr! That was really mean, Lord King!" Raphtalia was angry; the intense pout on her face and her glare was a dead giveaway that she was angry.

"What did I do again?" King watched the girl confused, scrunching his face innocently. He truly could not figure out why she was angry at times.

"I'm not a child anymore! I want to eat from the adult menu!"

"Sheesh, then why didn't you say anything?"

"Because… because…! Grr…" As they left the restaurant, Raphtalia started to pout intensely, still upset that King ordered from the kid's menu for her instead of what he himself would eat.

Nevertheless, she couldn't deny what King said. She did indeed always allow the man to order her food, saying nothing about if she wanted something else or not.

_"Maybe this is what they called a woman's pride?" _King really had no idea. He never had a girlfriend, nor did know what the other sex thinks about when they had these small outbursts.

King only knows that in some media, female characters were usually depicted in the way that they never said what they wanted directly, but rather expected others to read their subtle signs or even their mind.

In the end, they were the ones who were offended because the other side didn't get their 'subtle hints'.

_"Women are strange in the first place… for a while, I even asked her what she wanted, but she always said that she wanted the kid's menu! A week ago, she happily ate it, and now, she thinks that it's no good? She's weird…"_

"Alms. Please provide some kindness for the poor!" An old vagrant was begging not far from them, reaching out with his clutched, crusty hand. "My Lord! Please, give a donation to a poor old veteran!"

The man instinctively turned to King. He was evidently blind — judging from the fogginess of his eyes.

"Umm…" King glanced around; several people were watching him instinctively. They always did. In some way, wherever he went, be it this world or his own, people paid too much attention to him.

It was honestly unnerving and was just annoying. Why couldn't people leave him alone?

"Here." King handed a few copper coins to the old guy, hoping he could get away from here — and stop attracting unnecessary attention!

"Thank you, my Lord. You really are generous. In exchange, let me divine you and your companion's future."

Great, just what he needed. An old man and his superstition.

"That's really not necessary, we…"

"Lord King, don't be rude!" Raphtalia continued for the Shield Hero. "We'll accept your offer." she smiled angelically, stepping closer.

"Ah, just like the Lord, you too, are gracious, my lady, thank you. Then, if you may give me your palm…"

How did the old guy even know she was near him? The better question was, how did he know that she was his companion? He never said a single word that she was traveling together with him.

_"I've heard that the other senses of blind people are sharpened to an inhuman level to make up for their loss of vision… but this? Is this guy some psychic, or what?"_

Removing her gloves, Raphtalia offered her hand.

"Oh! I see! So you and your Lord are about to undertake an important mission."

"Yes, Lord King and I will fight against the wave!" Announced the girl cheerfully, even pushing her generously-sized chest forward proudly.

"Hmm, I see, I see…" The old man continued to caress Raphtalia's palm. Even watching that old crusty hand waving through Raphtalia's smooth skin made King shudder. "I see many dangers in your future, as well as great sadness and tragedy…"

"Oh!" Raphtalia's eyelids lowered, her face filled with sadness.

"But there is also hope! If you, my lady, are courageous enough, and if the great hero supports you in your endeavor, there might still be time and there would be a chance to avoid the tragedy haunting your past and save who is important to you! Indeed, you must be apt, and unfaltering, even against great odds! Even against the ones you hold close and dear. In the end, only you can decide how their story ends... in the end; you will be the one who makes the choice that will turn the tides!"

It was eerie cryptic; King didn't like it at all!

"Oh…" Raphtalia blinked, completely confused about what the old man told her.

_"What a cheap trick…" _King almost snorted. _"Like those fraudsters in those 'occult' TV shows. Fortune-tellers, those that can divine the future from the stars and cards? What bullshit…"_

There was one famous woman called Madame Shibabawa who often appeared on the TV back then — and even so; the Heroes Association requested her fortune-telling abilities frequently.

According to the higher-ups, she divined numerous catastrophes and monster sightings. If you asked King, she was just as fraud like any other fortune-tellers.

She even divined about him back then, saying that he was blessed with luck that could defy even the gods and would save the world when the time comes during its turning point.

_"Well, she was wrong… very wrong. Seeing my current situation and everything that has happened to me until now, I don't feel that godly luck she foretold…"_

More so, he felt more cursed than lucky.

Their world was full of monsters, as well as catastrophes that can potentially endanger the world went a daily base. Where is the luck in that equation? King just can't see…

_"Even I can wave my hands over a crystal ball and say that monsters and natural disasters would appear. There's no skill needed for that. Everyone knows that they happen. It'd be more impressive if she stated where, when, and why the natural disaster would occur, and also how to avoid it."_

"You have doubts, my Lord. Don't you?"

"Ah, me?" King blinked, watching the old man in surprise.

"Yes, you doubt my ability, as well as your own. But I don't blame you; many do so... many are unable to see their hidden prowess and power, no matter how humongous it was, despite it being before them all their life."

How did this old guy know about what he just thought? Was he actually a psychic? Was he reading his mind? Or did he just luckily guessed it?

_"Damn! This is starting to creep me out!"_

"Fufufu… don't fret, my Lord. I don't bite. Besides, what can you lose? In the worst possible case, my divination doesn't come true…"

"Well, I guess you are right." He only hoped that the guy was not sick with an infectious disease that spread through contact. That would really ruin his day. But getting a disease right before an important battle? He was 'lucky' enough for that to possibly befall him, that was for sure.

_"I mean… I was never really sick when I was here…" _And King didn't really plan to experience the new diseases in this world.

"…" Seeing Raphtalia watching him expectantly, King could only sigh.

_"Well… she was brave enough to do it. How would I look if I was afraid to reach out to a simple, blind old man?"_

And thus, King removed his gloves, offering his palm. Immediately, the old man clutched on it, and he felt those crusty old fingers running through the surface.

"Oh! How interesting! The palm of a warrior…"

_"Yeah, right..."_ Honestly, King didn't know what to do when people started to say something like this; either they were just mocking him, or worse, were being serious. _"I mean… it's enough of a problem at home that people think I am some unbeatable hero… if they start to think the same here too, There'll be problems…"_

"…Ohohoho! The Shield Hero himself no less!" The old man continued with a grin. He barely had five teeth — quite an odd toothless smile he offered — yet, King hardly ever saw a smile as bright as that. The only one that could smile at him like that was Raphtalia — and that was just because he did save her from slavery, after all.

_"Almost like the smiling face of a deformed baby…"_

"What a lucky day for an old man like myself to meet such a famous person."

"Hmm… right." How the hell did he know who he was? All of this was just starting to creep him out even more!

"I see the greatness in your palm, Shield Hero. A great hero, not only here but even in your world! What a surprise! Most summoned heroes come here without experience, completely unaware of the dangers and the responsibility they carry! But you! You've witnessed your fair share of horrors! You've gained experience, strengthened your mind, and sharpened your wits after each encounter! You, Shield Hero, are truly the chosen one destined to save our world!"

"Oh! As expected from Lord King!" Raphtalia, of course, clapped happily, her eyes shining intensely, adoring the man even more.

For King, of course, this was not a praise for him, but an even bigger burden, a responsibility he had to live up! He could only sulk, knowing that somehow, his fake reputation had even invaded this world and started to spread like wildfire.

_"Dammit… just what I needed…"_

"…Indeed, your hands tell it all. You are destined to greatness. But be warned! Sometimes, even the greatest heroes need someone to help them along the way."

"I am well aware…" King hummed, then a wild idea formed in his head. "Any sign about how I can get home?"

"Hmm…" The old man started to push his fingers deeper, touching King's palm. "Indeed, eventually, you will…"

"Thank god…" King muttered, sighing in relief.

"Lo-Lord King! You want to leave me!?" Raphtalia started to panic, her eyes almost teary.

"Well, not right away, but after he solves this issue with these waves." Well, he hoped he could survive that long. He would really be sad if he died halfway. Even with false hope, he could at least trick himself a little more- that he could just go back home and enjoy his games and manga!

"Hahaha! Don't worry, young lady; the Shield Hero has to overcome many odds before that. His time has not yet come to leave this world!"

"How reassuring…" King deadpanned, sarcastic and bitter about his situation.

"But what is this!?" The old man's foggy eyes widened, gulping deeply. "This… This…!? The World Devourer!? It cannot be!?"

"The what?" What 'World Devourer'?! Just what he needed… A monster that devours worlds?! What kind of deep shit had he found himself in this time!?

"Your future is blurred by great darkness… I am sorry, my Lord Shield Hero. I can't say any more. If I do so, the great hunger will recognize my peering gaze, and it will come here! All will end! All will be consumed!" The old man started to mumble, covering his face and sobbing. "She is already so close! Her tendrils are already touching my mind!"

"Err… okay. I'm sure we will solve it, somehow…" King honestly didn't know what this old man is babbling about; one thing was for sure- he wanted to get away from this creepy man as soon as possible. "Here's a silver coin. For your service… I guess."

"Ah, even when facing total annihilation, you are unmoved, just like the shield which was intended to protect our world. Truly, the Sacred Weapon chose its rightful champion…"

"Right, we need to go now. Are you sure you will be fine here?"

"I will be fine, Lord Shield Hero. Go forth! Fulfill your destiny! Save this world and all the other worlds. Defeat the great devourer which has haunted and consumed so many other worlds before!"

"I guess I'll do my best…" King slowly backed away, turning around and leaving the old man to his devices. No way did he wanted to remain near him any longer. Perhaps he'd scold himself for offering a silver, but he won't regret it. That old man was just creepy!

Slowly but steadily, they reached the church that Erhard spoke about. One thing King was glad about. There was no way he wanted to waste any more time with this than necessary.

_"It's even creepier up close…"_

He didn't like it, he saw too many times in different anime and manga of demons bursting through such adorned and wide doors from a secret summoning gone wrong, or a sect was hiding in a place like this.

"How beautiful!" Raphtalia, of course, was careless as they entered, her eyes shining as they walked past the entrance.

"You've never been to a church?"

"Not really…" She answered shyly, shaking her head.

"Hmm… I see." As they walked forward, King recognized how the nuns started to whisper amongst themselves, watching them intensely, some of them even glaring at him, before huffing and turning their head away.

_"I have goosebumps from entering this place. And those nuns? They're creepy as all hell!" _He recognized that before entering this place; the symbol of the church was depicted with three weapons in a strange formation that formed something akin to a cross.

The bow, the spear, and the sword, yet, no shield could be found in that formation.

_"I can't find the shield in them…" _Maybe this place only intended to pay respects to the three 'sacred weapons'? Then… where is the church for the shield? It was slightly odd that he had never found a church that had a shield symbol.

_"Not as though it was a problem. I don't really want to be followed around by a bunch of religious zealots…"_

At home, he had fans who went that far in their 'worship', even setting up creepy websites that he'd rather not speak about, but he had nonchalantly stumbled in them from time to time. Some worshipping him as a God incarnate, the symbol of heroism itself, the eternal protector of mankind...

_"I remember stumbling upon a few of those… Jeez! They really are too much for normal people to bear. Still, there are some fans that made creepier stuff…"_

He even saw weird King x Tatsumaki shit while browsing the internet. Some was kinda cute, but there were stuff that would make any normal person gag in disgust. Honestly speaking? Even if he was strong enough, and even if he saw a monster about to attack the people that created those things... he wouldn't be proud of it, but he'd just pretend he didn't see anything. The internet didn't need any more weird shit.

"The Shield Hero, I take it?"

"Hmm?" King turned his attention to the nun that called for him. She looked different from the rest, wearing a white veil instead of black. Her face was strict and slightly wrinkled, just as expected from a head nun of any kind.

"Ah, yes?"

"May I know what are you doing here?"

"We came to investigate this 'Hourglass Of The Dragon's Era'. Any chance we can see it?"

"Hmm… I see." The way the head nun raised her chin and looked down on King made him hesitant. King felt something akin to scorn in her words, some antagonism radiating from her gaze.

"Follow me, Shield Hero…" And the way she squinted her eyes… the local guards used to look at him this way. Something was definitely up.

Yet, he followed the head nun wordlessly, leading him to an even more intricate-looking hall.

In the middle of the hall, a tall hourglass stood; it was approximately seven meters tall, with red sand enshrined within it. It was decorated and gave off an indescribable divine aura.

_"Well, it's definitely not a normal hourglass…."_ King concluded in his head. Indeed, if he had to compare it to something, it looked more like a respawn shrine he encountered in a few RPGs.

_"And look at that! Almost all of the red sand is in the bottom half!" _That meant that they didn't have much time left.

'Kaching!'

A sudden ray hit the jewel on his shield, originating from the top of the device.

"Lord King!" Raphtalia shouted in fright from the sudden beam of light, but what appeared before King's eyes was even more frightful.

[21:31]

_"W-what the hell is this!? Less than a day!?" _He thought he at most had two more days before that thing hits! But less than a day? This was a little too sudden for him.

With the doomsday clock so close to zero, King had little time to think!

Now... how would 'The Strongest Man On Earth' solve this situation?

* * *

**A/N:**

**Well, this is it!**

**Part 1 from 2 is completed! (originally, it was one chapter, but I cut it two… I don't want to publish a 20k+ word chapter XD 15k+ already long enough to bear and read XD)**

**The second part already typed, waiting for proofreaders to complete their work!**

**Be patient and it will come! :P**

**Sorry about the delay… laziness, work, life and other things took my time! XD**

**In the next chapter: The Wave hits! How will King solve the situation?**

**RnR!**

**Read and Review!**

**Send PM if you have further questions!**

**Good day! Good night! Good sail! Safe winds!**

**Until next time!**

**Be aware of Korona-chan!**


	6. King of the Wave!

**Written by Oblivon2991**

**Proofread: The usual drunken gang of misfits and TranscendedPotato**

**Thank you for reading my fanfiction and for giving me a chance.**

**My mother tongue isn't English, so please be patient about the grammatical issues.**

**I don't own One Punch Man anime/manga/webcomic, it belongs to ONE.**

**I don't own The Rising of the Shield Hero (Japanese: ****盾の勇者の成り上がり****, Hepburn: Tate no Yūsha no Nariagari), it is written by Aneko Yusagi.**

**If you have anything to add or have questions, or remark, please review, or send a PM.**

**Thank you!**

**Now let's start the story!**

* * *

**Chapter 6: King of the Wave!**

* * *

**[****ドドド** **Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドド****]**

"Lo-Lord King! Please, calm down. What happened?" That rumbling sound that Raphtalia recognized all too well filled the hall.

Since traveling with King, she could say that she experienced what would happen when she heard it!

It was terrible news for anyone standing in the way of the Shield Hero. Yet, it was the sign of hope for anyone that stood on his side!

It was the rumbling sound that wrought both dread to foe, and courage to ally!

The sound of battle intent! The sound of King's bloodlust — or at least, that what she could get from all the times she heard that terrible and intimidating roar of **[Rumble]**, seeing other people and bandits flee, or monsters would get absolutely annihilated when it started quaking from King's very being.

Every time she heard it, people or monsters were intimidated — some so much so they immediately conceded, retreated, or in the case of monsters — died — and thus, Raphtalia concluded that it was the bloodlust of King that was pumping, forming a strange, dark-red aura around the man.

"We have less than a day until the wave arrives," King answered with a cold tone, finally raising his head. His expression, unmoving and firm like always, showing no fear — it never showed fear on the outside, at least.

"Wha-What!? Less than a day!? But you said-"

"I miscalculated the time we had left. Let's go, there's no time to waste." With time running short, King needed to hurry and finish his preparations. There was no way he wanted to face the calamity without everything well-prepared.

"Look, if it isn't the Shield Hero? Or should I say the Shield Criminal?" A familiar voice called from behind him, making King turn around slowly. His slow turn was menacing; like his posture, every move he made had a feeling of precise calculation.

"Oh, you're here..." King waved to the blond spear hero, completely disregarding what the man just said. "You came to check the time left too? Moto… Motoyuki, was it?" He honestly forgot his name. It was about a month since he was summoned, and since he had only met him on the first day, he didn't leave all that much of an impression on King.

_"How time flies…" _King thought to himself, surprised at his progress.

If you asked him a month ago, King would have said without a doubt that he would have died here in less than three days. Yet here he was now! Only twenty-one hours away from a possible catastrophe! And he was still alive and kicking!

Surviving for more than twenty-nine days here without any help — well, Raphtalia was there to help him deal with monsters that would've taken too long to kill with his attack power; still, for more than a week, he was entirely alone, and that counted for something impressive, coming from a 29-year-old antisocial Otaku loser.

"IT'S MOTOYASU!" The spear hero yelled, clearly angry that King couldn't even bother to remember his name.

"Oh, sorry about that. It's been close to a month since we last met, and you weren't really all that memorable, to be honest." Ignoring Motoyasu's growing anger, King continued. "So, are you here to check the time left until the wave hits?"

"What!? No!" The spear hero seemed impatient and was obviously angry for some reason, even contorting his face in disgust.

King himself had no idea why, though. He only misremembered his name. That wasn't a crime or anything, right? He could forgive him for believing Myne without evidence, he seemed the sort to jump straight to conclusions. What was his problem this time?

"Lord King, who are these people?"

"Ah, He's the Spear Hero, and those are his companions. That blonde guy over there was also summoned like me."

"Oh! I see!" Raphtalia hummed a few times, inspecting the hero from head to toe. "Isn't he shorter than depicted in the books?"

"Is that so?" Books? Were there books about heroes? _"Wait… she said something about those when she was still in her kid-form. Ah, right! She told me that her parents often read to her about the four cardinal heroes. I see… So Motoyasu's shorter than depicted in the books? Or are there other heroes that are summoned?"_

"Mhmm…" Raphtalia hummed, confirming King's question.

"How dare you mock the Spear Hero, you mere demihuman! I'll…"

"So, you're here too, Myne." King's gaze fell to the girl, his tone cold and collected. Somehow, this was enough to place immense pressure on her. That unmoving, mocking gaze made the girl tremble in her boots, gulping nervously as her jealous green eyes met King's icy stare. It was as if her mere hatred was nothing more than a single drop of water in an ocean, compared to King's deep blue stare. It seemed deep, deeper than the ocean. Was he calculating something, even now?

"Eek!" That murderous, terrifying visage again! That constant, motionless stare of King made Myne tremble in fear, as she stepped back and hid behind the Spear Hero. "Yo-You!?"

"Are you feeling better? Or does your sleep-walking still trouble you? You should check a doctor if that's the case. You might get hurt at night again."

"I-I…" Myne couldn't speak; some unknown dread filled her chest, making her tongue go numb and unable to form coherent words.

This man knew! This man saw through her plans since the very first step she took! This monster was toying with her, savoring her fear, waiting for the moment to devour her whole!

_"No! I can't fall apart! Not here, and definitely not now! Not before them!"_ This beast was playing around with her, dominating her since the first moment! Mocking and spitting at her every attempt and step of her plan!

But she would not give up! She would never give up! She would resist and show him what it meant to be the first princess of the country! Even if she were on the brink of death, she would never give up! Her pride wouldn't allow it!

"Just as I thought! You're a brute in every sense of the word! First, you rape poor Myne, and now you still keep her in terror! Just how low can you go?!"

At least her pawn was still under her control! Yes! As Motoyasu was still on her side, she was safe, and the plan could go on! The tactic of the carrot and stick worked well for now with this man.

_"This horny idiot needs nothing more than a few sweet words, and to incite some guilt in him. Batting a few eyelashes to convince him is more than enough, and he believes everything I say. What a fool."_

Myne smirked to herself, already weaving a plan to eliminate the Shield Devil from the game.

Back in the Adventurers Guild, she had almost lost Motoyasu thanks to the Bow and Sword Hero's logical arguments. She was actually lucky that those sages summoned such a gullible person like Motoyasu. She was also lucky that she chose him and not the other two heroes to join up with after betraying the Shield Hero, otherwise, her plan would've already fallen apart.

It couldn't be helped; the Shield Devil had already seen through her plan and convinced the Sword and Bow heroes. Who knew such a formidable man would've been summoned to the useless role of the shield? If she knew about this, she would have started differently, coming up with a better plan to frame him. Thinking about it, framing him for rape was perfectly stupid, as the Sword Hero did raise a point- if he really DID rape her, she would've been in much worse shape than she was that morning.

Hell, had he been summoned as the other roles, like the Spear, Sword, or Bow Heroes, she would probably have tried to befriend him- or at least get on his good side.

_"But it's already too late. The path to the Crown leads through him." _It was so close, Myne- no, Malty wasn't going back to the drawing board!

"Look, I-" King wanted to deny the claim of the Spear Hero. What was he talking about? This again? King really had enough. He's never even touched a girl before, much less rape one! Well, aside from Raphtalia, when she needed help cleaning up when she was still smaller. But she was more like a daughter to him. Not to mention, despite how she looked like right now- she was still just 10!

That was the final straw! He had enough already! Bring evidence of him raping her first, then suspect him with such serious charges! Honestly, did he come from a world where women never lied or something?

But before he could voice that out, something unexpected happened!

"Oh! And who is that cutie on your side?" Motoyasu was before Raphtalia in less than a moment, grabbing her hand and towering above her.

"Salutations, beautiful mistress! I'm the Spear Hero, Kitamura Motoyasu! If you were so kind, I'd appreciate it if you would save the world with me."

_"Hey! Doesn't he have more than enough party members already?! Don't try and steal my only one!" _King sweatdropped, seeing the attempt of Motoyasu to steal Raphtalia from his party- in broad daylight- no less! At least try to offer something to her when he wasn't around, like in those novels! Actually, no, that would be worse. Don't do either of them!

If she left him for this playboy, he would be in deep trouble. He may have a higher level compared to the weaker monsters around the city, and he might have various skills to incapacitate monsters, but he had little to no confidence that he could face the coming calamity alone — with the little to no damage output he possessed. Well, he could survive- if he ran away and hid like he always did. But according to the knowledge he gained- he would just teleport straight to where the wave was happening. Running away was sadly not an option for him this time. Meaning, he had to actually face the wave.

If, and only if his teammates weren't complete vacuum-brained dunderheads like this fellow, it wouldn't have mattered. The role of a tank was to direct aggro away from the DPS members and to take the majority of the damage so that the other party members wouldn't end up dead. Sadly, one was a brain-dead plant with blond hair, another was some kid in high school that thought he could solo the game like in open-world RPGs, and another was just a kid that looked and acted way too young for his actual age.

"If you remain with a criminal like him, It'll be bad for you! He'll just use you until he's had his fun, then he'll just throw you away! He already did that with poor Myne! You will be in grave danger, the longer you spend time with him! Join my party and I'll protect you from this beast."

_"This again? This is ridiculous!" _Muttered King to himself, and he couldn't help but sigh, long since tired of this charade. If he had the chance, he would take this person, sit down with him... and have a long talk about how to deal with criminal charges and the rights of the accused. He was no lawyer, but he was sure he could knock some sense into this numbskull's empty vacuum in place of his brain!

"I…I…" Raphtalia only hesitated for a moment before pulling herself away from Motoyasu. "You are wrong; Lord King is not like that! He saved me! He's even protected me from the beginning, even going as far as to risk his life for me! I don't know what happened between the two of you in the past, but the Shield Hero is not like how you depicted him. He's a true hero! A hero like what the stories depict! No! Even the stories can't describe how heroic he is!" Raphtalia said, a shine in her eyes like when a fangirl was to start talking about their favorite bands.

_"This girl… she idolizes me too much. A little compliment or some acknowledgment for what I've been doing was nice every now and then, but this is starting to become ridiculous." _King felt as though he was back home again, receiving compliments and praise even when he did nothing, and this started to make him worry.

"You dare to mock Lord Motoyasu, you demi-human!? You dare accuse him of lying!?" Myne gathered her courage and stepped forward, glaring at Raphtalia. Of course, the other members of her party had also started to radiate intense ill-will towards King and his only party member.

One of the party members of Motoyasu was her close friend — who resembled her personality-wise. The others? The two of them kept them under control with subtle manipulation and lies.

It wasn't Motoyasu who controlled the party! All the aces were in her hand!

"I…" Raphtalia bit her lip, slightly intimidated by the amount of ill intent that the girls started to radiate towards her.

"You should know your place! Filthy demi-humans like you-"

"Myne. That's not a nice thing to say…"

**[****ド**** Rumble ****ド****]!**

The King Engine needed only to echo once, and the people in the hall already started to shudder, backing away as King stepped before Raphtalia, blocking all the glares aimed at her.

His inspiring, towering form was like a protective barrier before her, the girl felt truly safe against all the odds with the Shield Hero on her side.

"What changed in you, Myne? Since we first met, your personality took a 180-degree turn. You were so enthusiastic, so glad you joined me. Yet, after a bad dream, you completely changed. What happened?"

"I-I…" That face! That terrifying rumble! He just stared at her! He wasn't even blinking!? It was unnatural! How could someone glare for so long without even blinking!?

No! It was like his face was growing ever larger the longer he stared at her! It was immense! It was indescribable! It was able to turn the tides she meticulously crafted and reflected it back to her with sheer, unimaginable strength! Against his pure might, all her subterfuge seemed worthless!

"Despite the lies that you came up with, I'm still worried about your state of health. In your current state, you shouldn't go adventuring. Motoyasu, I hope you take care of her well. Her mind's a little unstable since that bad dream she suffered."

"Because you raped her, you beast! That's what broke her!"

_"Sigh!_ This again…?" King really had enough of this senseless accusation. Did they have any evidence? If not, why would they continue accusing him of something he never did? Hell, after all the points he brought up, the only thing they seemed to do was filter out all the logic and lived in their little bubble of lies! Did logic even permeate their skulls?

"I'm getting tired of this already…" King sighed, shaking his head. It was as if this conversation no longer interested him anymore, moving forth without being bothered by Motoyasu and his party. They were no threat, but rather an annoyance; a fly that he could crush anytime. Yes, he gave away that feeling.

A feeling of dread and despair.

"How dare you!? I will-!"

King raised his head once more, almost as if looking down on Motoyasu. Immediately after seeing that pitying, unmoving expression, the Spear Hero faltered.

"As I said before, provide evidence that I even committed such atrocities. One shouldn't accuse others with such serious crimes, without any proof backing them in return. As someone who came from a similar environment like me, I thought that you'd know of the saying, 'Innocent until proven guilty'. It's been used in all court systems and has never once been changed. Until you can provide clear evidence, don't accuse others, or there will be trouble…"

"Yo-you!?" Motoyasu gritted his teeth, his head boiling over in anger! Hell, his teeth grinding against each other was audible!

He had nothing tangible to prove what the Shield Hero did!

More so, the logical argument that he came up with- even recanted by his two fellow heroes, even he started to have doubts about Myne's innocence. Of course, that was until she changed his mind with her reasoning.

Yeah, there was no way such an innocent-looking girl like her was lying! Why would she come up with such a plot? It just made no sense!

"If you excuse us, we still have a few things to do before the wave hits. There is no time to waste, especially not with such nonsense that would lead to nothing being accomplished. Myne, please, seek out a doctor, you need help, not just for your sleep-walking, but for your overactive dreams. I heard that it's a sign of not having enough sleep."

"Ho-How dare you!? I… Hey! Don't ignore me!"

Ignoring Myne's screeching, King walked out of the chamber the Dragon Hourglass was in. According to his experience- well, experience in terms of novels and manga, it was better to ignore such troublesome people, even more so if they were just people who did nothing but complain. Wasting more time or energy on them would be nonsense.

"Damn you!" Myne had pulled out a dagger and was about to throw it at King's head when King glanced back at her — needless to say, by complete coincidence.

"…"

The Strongest Man on Earth offered a stare that mirrored his utterly uninterested, bored expression, but it made Myne's entire body tremble, dropping the dagger as she fell to her knees.

Though he seemed uninterested, it was like that of an immense beast simply looking at an ant, barely noticing it before going about their day! It was like a great dragon uncaringly going back to sleep after noticing the poor peasant that accidentally wandered into its lair.

'Clang!' As the dagger fell onto the ground, it slightly scratched Myne's leg — she didn't even register the scratch on her leg due to the immense fear filling her body.

"Hmm…"

King noticing her current pathetic display and that shake of his head after a few seconds of a 'glare' was only the icing on top in her complete humiliation.

As King continued on his way, he stopped near Motoyasu for a moment, placing his hand on his shoulder. "…Be careful, Motoyasu; this is not a game. One slip and it's GAME OVER. Fight your hardest when the time comes, or you might end up dying. The chaos of battle and the monsters on the battlefield are unpredictable. Heroes can fall like flies, and don't forget... you only have one life."

**[****ドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドド****]**

"… Consider your next actions carefully…"

In all honesty, King had intended this to be a piece of good advice for the coming wave — coming from his experience with monsters and how unpredictable they could be — coming from his honest concern about his fellow Sacred Weapon wielder's good health. He's seen plenty of young, aspiring heroes dead because of their recklessness and underestimating the monsters!

But for Motoyasu, it sounded like a death threat intended to intimidate him. And it worked! Maybe too well!

_"This pressure…!" _Motoyasu froze the moment his gaze met King's cold expression. That unmoving face! The unimaginable pressure he exuded that made even Dragon level threats turn tail and run- much less attack King!

This man was a monster! Ren was right, he really wasn't normal!

In truth, just now, though he wouldn't admit it, Motoyasu considered him perhaps more of a threat than the coming calamity!

At this moment, he looked like a giant who was barely holding his leg back to squish the bug that was Motoyasu — only holding himself back by an inch needed to completely squish him!

The Spear Hero's legs trembled in fear! He could barely stand straight to support his weight!

"… Good luck out there." King patted his shoulder a few times encouragingly, proceeding out the room without even looking back. "Come, Raphtalia; we have a lot to do before the calamity hits."

"Ye-Yes! Lord King!"

With that, King and his companion left, merely passing by the people who watched them the whole time.

That day, King and his infamy only grew exponentially. The pressure he released, unknown to him, had made many passersby engrave this moment in their mind, spreading the news further, warning everyone to stay out of the Shield Hero's way. He didn't even feel like the Shield Hero. He felt more like an apex predator, or a natural disaster, given thought and free will! Earning his ire would only bring unimaginable consequences!

'Thud!'

At the moment they left the temple, Motoyasu fell onto his knees, his face blank and pale. His body was still trembling and limp, only managing to support himself with his arms.

_"Barf!"_ Throwing up his meal, even his arms started getting weaker.

It would seem like a sorry sight if it wasn't for a more pathetic display coming from his party members. Some of them seemed to completely lose their bodily control, slumping on the ground, the more cowardly ones even peeing themselves. The majority of them were trembling like a litter of storm-tossed puppies on a massive whaling ship in the middle of a cyclone.

"He really is a monster… an absolute monster, no doubt about it!"

It was said that animals and even people could instinctively feel when grave danger was approaching them, and just now? Motoyasu felt as though he just dodged an apocalyptic threat!

His heart was still in his throat; he couldn't stop sweating, breathing haphazard. Every cell in his body was trembling, threatening to fall apart at any given moment!

"Lord Motoyasu! Are you alright!?" His more courageous party members that were in better condition immediately gathered around him, as they too were shaken by what happened, even ignoring Myne, who started to vomit intensely on the side, her skin taking an unnatural coloration.

"I… I… DAMMMIIIT!" Helpless, the Spear Hero slammed the ground with his fists. That day, unknown to King, he had once again disarmed not one, but two opponents who intended to hinder, or even eliminate him. At least… for a while.

Only one thing was for sure! The S-Class Hero King had earned two victories that day, without so much as lifting a finger to conquer his opponents.

…

"_Sigh_! What a bother!" Outside, King just sighed, glad that he managed to get away from that cultist-like church and that obnoxious Spear Hero — not to mention that mentally ill woman who was talking nonsense.

_"Still, I am worried about Myne. She might be lying, but her deteriorating mental state is obvious_…"

He had already notified everyone about it around a month ago, but they didn't listen to him. It seems as though they didn't intend to do anything to help her. She was obviously not right in the head; how else would her personality change so suddenly in just one day? Hell, if the problem started with that bad dream she had... how bad was it that she ended up getting a serious mental illness?

_"She most likely has schizophrenia or some other mental disorder right now. Oh well, it's not my problem anymore. I warned them already, what more can I do? She's also no longer my party member; I can only hope someone recognizes this and helps her."_

"Lord King? If I may ask... what was that all about in the church?" Raphtalia caught up with him, awaiting answers while staring at King with her big eyes.

"It's just a little misunderstanding. I'd rather not explain it right now. Maybe later…" King was already strained with how near the coming wave was; he had no mood for a long-winded explanation about how the king of this place seemed to favor the girl who accused him on a dime instead of one of the heroes that his sages summoned, even ignoring his clearly flawless alibi.

"Okay…" The girl accepted it without any further question. She was curious, but still, the Shield Hero was a good person, as well as a responsible hero! There was no way he would lie to her or want to hurt her like how those other people said he would. Her trust in King was absolute, and that's what mattered most to her. After all, if he wanted to just use and then leave her, he would never have cleaned her up and protected her so well.

…

Around ten hours later, they returned to Erhard's shop, just in time as the blacksmith finished with the preparation of the new gear.

"Damn! Now you look like a proper hero!" Donning the armor, King inspected himself before the mirror, watching his new form skeptically as Erhard praised his work.

"Indeed, this armor fits you a lot better than that chainmail, Lord King. Good pick! Thank you for your hard work, Sir Erhard!"

"Ahahahaha! Thank you! I put my best efforts into this armor! No monster or bandits will try to approach him without being suicidal, I can guarantee that!"

"Hmm…" King inspected himself in the mirror, subtly striking poses.

If the armor was white, then yes. He'd look like a proud knight from those medieval documentaries he watched before. But the plating was dark-grey, mostly black on some parts, and instead of the smooth look of knight's armor, the armor he was wearing was jagged in many places...

_"What kind of weird tastes do they have? Now I look like a warlord! This is not what I described… It's not subtle at all!" _Nonetheless, the defensive property of this armor was a lot better than the previous one. Also, he could move a lot better in this than in that chainmail — which wasn't segmented armor and was basically a simple chainmail shirt.

_"But why am I even complaining right now? In games, if something had better stats than the one my character was wearing, I would change to that gear immediately. It doesn't matter if they fit my current set or not. To be honest, I wouldn't care even if I looked like a clown wearing it."_

Oftentimes it made him look like an abomination, an assault to the eyes, wearing all out-of-place-looking armor pieces.

_"But still, most if not all people would play like this, unless they have the skill to make up for it. I'd choose function over aesthetics any day…" _King yanked the cloak that was draped over and fixed on his shoulders by a smart mechanism — so that he could remove it if needed — spreading it behind his back, caressing the material, and offering a grimace.

"Why the cloak?" He definitely didn't order a cloak or cape, as he considered them heavily impractical, a potential hazard that could cause death if something unexpected happens.

_"I read the news back then about how several rookie heroes died because of their capes. They aren't practical at all…" _Moreover, the Heroes Association also had a basic hero guide, which included a small section for hero costumes. It heavily advised against capes or cloaks as they could be a hazard if they got stuck or if the hero stepped on them and slipped while fighting a monster — also, the monsters or villains could grab it and use it against the hero if he was an amateur.

_"Well, Saitama wears one..."_ King already tried to warn him about the potential hazard a cape could cause, but his friend only said that it didn't bother him, and heroes should wear a cape. How else would people know he was a hero if he wasn't wearing one?

Yeah, that was his reasoning. Not a good one, but King accepted it. To speak plainly, he recalled how strong his buddy was... and it was probably true that it wouldn't bother him in the least.

_"Well… he's strong enough to plainly ignore the dangers, and even then, he's been wearing the costume for one and a half years before. He would probably be used to it."_

But for him, who was essentially paranoid when it came to personal safety, it was not really a good idea to wear one. Unless they had stat bonuses or whatever, he wouldn't put them on anyway. Only when he's reached the highest possible level on a game would he even care about his appearance.

"It's weaved with metal fibers, and it's made of fireproof- and waterproof material. It can also keep you warm at night, and it protects you from the rain. It's quite flexible. Also, it's stylish. Girls would do a double-take when they see you wearing this!"

Erhard grinned mischievously and offered a thumbs-up, and King could only sweatdrop in response. He disliked such jokes, considering them poor in taste.

"I see…"

_"On the other hand, count on Erhard to make even a useless accessory useful! Fireproof and waterproof? I could use it to put out fires if one were to break out, and weaved with metal fibers? He's a master smith, alright. I think I might even be able to take on a fully grown dragon like this. Well, if I had a better source of damage, that is."_

As much as he'd like to dream, Raphtalia was nowhere near strong enough to take on a dragon. Even if he could tank the damage, Raphtalia's equipment just wasn't up to the task.

"Lo-Lord Erhard! Please don't joke about such a thing!" Raphtalia pouted with an embarrassed expression, an expression Erhard could only laugh at.

"Hahaha! Sorry, sorry, young lady. It's just a tasteless joke. One needs to find something to keep their spirits up, with the calamity approaching soon."

"Sure…" King checked out the other accessories he requested. Among them were a practical accessory belt, many hidden pockets that were perfectly integrated along with the armor, and several other things Erhard had time to incorporate in such a short time.

"So, what do you think? I couldn't make everything you requested in such a short time, and while working on it, I realized that I didn't have the precision tools necessary to implement some of the crazier ideas, nor did I have the necessary knowledge to work them in with a smaller scale to fit on the armor. Maybe other, more professional smiths would be able to implement them for you; unfortunately, I'm not knowledgeable enough, nor am I an engineer…"

"Not a problem; in such a short time, this much is more than enough." King checked a small switch near his wrist, and immediately after, it shot out an expanding net, almost hitting Erhard.

"Hey, hey! Careful with that! You don't know how hard it was to make a crossbow small enough to fit on your arm, not to mention configuring the crossbow to make it shoot out a net properly! Don't go using it recklessly, I haven't perfected the system yet! Also, the reload is problematic!"

"I can imagine…" King was not a mechanic. In truth, he didn't have a lot of experience fixing things, so the most basic thing he could do was probably just replace leaking pipes. Anything that required tools was a no-go. What he could do relatively well, however, was putting together electronic devices following the guide, and fixing them if any problems popped up. Needless to say, when it came to electronics, he was pretty good at handling them.

"What are these?" King pointed at the empty sockets on his segmented half-plate. It was some kind of chamber, definitely for something to be fitted in there later.

"Oh, that! I prepared the armor to be able to install the missing elements later. It sticks out a little, but it won't hinder you while you're fighting, I made sure of that."

"Aesthetics are secondary." Raising his shieldless forearm and pushing a trigger; a small round shield folded out just like a fan. It would definitely be weaker than his legendary shield- seeing as it was indestructible, but as he couldn't use anything else as a weapon, it would serve a purpose to provide some protection on his other arm, not just the one that carried his actual shield.

"Heh! You speak like a veteran warrior. Not like those spoiled nobles. Of course, aesthetics are worthless when in real combat. I can vouch for that."

"You were a warrior once?" Erhard was a blacksmith, true. Yet, King was only mildly surprised. The man was built like an ox, muscles that didn't seem to originate from blacksmithing alone. Still, to think that he was an adventurer before? That was probably when Erhard got those scars on his face. King just couldn't imagine Erhard being clumsy enough to harm himself, so getting the scar from adventuring seemed more plausible.

"You can say that. I was an adventurer before…" Erhard sighed, looking towards one of the armors in the corner with an absent expression, remembering his days as an adventurer. "But it was a long time ago. Let's not waste any more words on it."

"Okay."

"Heh! That's what I like about you! No needless chit-chat, just action! If you were a little less intimidating, people might even call you a proper hero…"

"We are working on it, Sir Erhard! Am I right, Lord King?" Raphtalia grabbed his arm, hugging it closely. "Lord King might only speak when it's necessary; and his face might be intimidating for those who don't know him, but he is definitely a true hero!"

_"Give me a break…" _King thought reluctantly. Even when he only had that chainmail, people would mistake him as a bandit or some criminal. It wasn't his fault his face was intimidating for others! He had no control over it!

_"With this armor, it might actually get worse…" _The metal was darker than the previous chainmail he wore, and his cloak didn't help either. It just gave him a more robust, hardened look. Though it did look cool from a different angle, it made him seem more like a warmongering tyrant, rather than a proud knight.

_"Oh, well… as long as it provides protection, it's good enough. Let's hope it'll actually be satisfactory."_

"What do you think about yours, Raphtalia?" Urging himself to change the topic, King asked his companion.

"Ah! I think that it's quite good. It has chainmail and padding underneath, and I can still move my arms freely." She demonstrated by moving her arms around and hitting the air a few times with an imaginary sword. "It's quite flexible! I'm sure it won't affect my performance, Lord King!"

"That's good… so, how much do we owe you for all of this?"

"Well, about that…" Erhard scratched the back of his head sheepishly, offering a mischievous smile. King could already tell that he wouldn't like the next few words that came out of his mouth.

_"Shit…" _**[****ド**** Rumble! ****ド****]**

…

_"Sigh…"_ King's steps were heavy as he treaded on the sidewalk, with the grave expression on his face, and the sheer intensity of the aura radiating off him; people couldn't help but give way when King passed them.

"Ah… Lord King, I don't think it's that bad. I think for such high-quality gear, Lord Erhard gave us quite a generous price. He even gave us a great discount after you convinced him!"

_"A great portion of our funds are gone… and he still wanted _more_? I really should have given him a price range… Even though she's mentally unstable right now, I miss Myne telling me how much to spend on things."_

King was unaware of it, but at first, Erhard wanted to ask for more, but when King towered above him and asked: _"Don't you think that's a little bit much?"_ Erhard immediately gave King a huge discount, along with allowing for the price of the armor to be paid in installments. His reasoning being — "It's for one of the four Cardinal Heroes who will be fighting against the waves, trying to gouge a hero for more profits would just be plain stupid!" and "It would bring more customers if others see a Hero wearing the gear I made. The publicity that comes from it would boost my sales!"

_"Typical trader mentality…"_ King thought, at first. Then again, a great portion of the price was probably just from how hard it was to design and create the armor in such a short time. Not to mention, it was made in such a way that pieces that were damaged beyond repair could just be replaced with other parts- making replacement and upgrading his armor a much easier process. Still- the price he gave was literally highway robbery!

But still, the real reason for the sudden discount was his immense fear that King would squash him like a bug if he gave too unreasonable a price. Erhard simply felt a tremendous pressure whenever King was around him. Though he was a hero, he was prone to anger, like everyone else. Annoy him too much, and... well, he didn't want to think about it.

"Five more minutes…" Ignoring Raphtalia's cheerful attitude, King checked his shield to tell how much time he had left.

The day had passed by so fast; King didn't even register it. Finishing all those errands around town had taken him a significant amount of time.

_"How terrifying…" _The adventurers and guards that he could see were visibly preparing, arming themselves, gathering in the town square for the wave to hit.

Certainly, the town was a lot busier than previously. If he could use a sword, he could probably cut the tension in the air. Or actually, if he could use a sword, everything would've gone much smoother. Hell, any weapon would've given him an edge! A mace, a shortsword, hell, even a dagger would've been nice! But no; he only had two options. Bashing enemies with his shield, and using his physical strength.

Slowly but surely, a small army started to gather in this town, prepared to clash with whatever the calamity would throw at them.

_"Gee, I wonder why…?" _King asked himself sarcastically, feeling more and more nervous as the time ticked towards zero.

"So, Lord King, how do you think we'll manage? With the wave so close, and all."

"I'm not sure. It's my first time experiencing the wave, after all…" Even if he had met monsters before, he's never really fought them before. This would be his first time fighting his earnest, aside from when he was farming tirelessly to raise his level.

_"My experience in my old world doesn't really count, as I've always run away from the threat, managed to solve the situation with a bluff, or another hero in the vicinity appeared, defeating the monster, letting me sneak away unscathed…"_

He feared that even with the experience of fighting monsters he gathered during the passing month and his increased stats were nowhere near enough to prepare him for what was to come. Fearing that no matter how hard he ground his levels, no matter how many new skills he got, despite all his preparations, when the wave finally hits, and the monsters start flooding the surrounding... he'd be an unrecognizable red splotch on the ground, dead within the first five minutes.

"Ah, you're right, I shouldn't have asked such an obvious question." Raphtalia lowered her head, ashamed for asking an obvious question. How was King to know? He hasn't even experienced it yet, being summoned only a month ago, sometime after the first wave.

"It's alright, you don't need to apologize. I understand what you mean, I'm as anxious as you are with the coming calamity." King tried to calm himself down beforehand, but it didn't help; he continued trembling nonetheless. Though it wasn't visible, he was definitely still trembling under the facade of calmness he tried to keep up. Somehow, he trembled at such a frequency that the man just 'vibrated', and with the increase in his stats, his trembling made the surrounding air feel heavy around him, and the stones were also vibrating from his feet.

"R-really?" Raphtalia blinked, confused by what the mighty Shield Hero said. He was 'anxious' like she was? But he was King! The Shield Hero! Even against monsters that she didn't think they would be able to fight against, he would always incapacitate them with ingenious tactics, allowing her to deliver the coup de grâce! Never once had she ever seen fear on her Lord's face, always facing monsters with a stalwart gaze!

"Yes, I don't know what will come from the wave. We've done our best to prepare for it, but that alone does not guarantee our victory. We need to be careful when facing the wave, as there might be unknown threats that might catch us off guard."

After remaining silent for a few seconds, Raphtalia started to giggle, covering her mouth with her fist.

"What are you laughing at?" King asked, puzzled. It was no joke! They could seriously die!

"Well…" Raphtalia started to play with her fingers, looking shy. "Lord King, you've always protected me until now, providing guidance to me. Even against great odds, you've always succeeded. I trust that you can guide us through even this storm!"

"…" King raised his brow skeptically.

This kid gave him too much credit.

What he did was something everyone could do. Hell, some people could probably do better. He was no one special, just a simple person who could bluff like a master, and that's all. Actually, it would be fitting to just call him a conman and be done with it.

He was no hero, he was just a nobody who was cursed to get into extremely dangerous situations most- no, all the time! He was just a 29-year old neet loser otaku that the Heroes Association gave too much credit to for being near dead monsters most of the time, and that just so happened to occur consecutively!

"You are the Shield Hero, are you not, Lord King? The stories always say that the Shield Hero is fair and just, and he is the savior of the people, striving to save everyone, even if it costs their life. And ever since I've known you, it's not a rumor anymore, it's a fact!"

"…" King just remained silent. He was really concerned about how the kid put too much faith in him. He feared that she would ultimately get disappointed once she found out about his true nature.

"Actually, no! Ever since I've met you, you've surpassed my expectations, and even the tales that my parents told me about the Shield Hero, Lord King!" The girl grabbed King's hand, holding them up and making eye contact with King. Her eyes were basically brimming with as much respect and adoration as those eyes could hold. They may as well be twinkling with stars.

"I am so grateful to have met you, my Lord. You've given me another reason to live, protected me whenever I needed it, and you've prepared me for what's to come, even if you don't think it's enough. You've given me a way to fight back against the wave! The means to protect others from the tragedy that occurred to me!"

"This-"

"I am your sword! I will follow you wherever you go! I swear, wherever you stand, I will strike down your foes, whoever they may be!"

King lowered his head, considering what she said. In the end, a small, thin, unnoticeable, but true smile formed on his face.

"Do you really think of me like that?" A warm, satisfying feeling filled him.

Was this is the feeling of being adored as a hero? Was this the feeling of someone giving him a compliment for something he truly worked for?

It was strange…

It wasn't that peculiar, empty remorse he usually felt when the Heroes Association gave him credit for killing monsters that he was around when he either ran away or knew nothing about them. No! It was a feeling that people typically felt when they arrived home after a long day of work. Or when he finally beat a really hard level after working for it for so long! It was a satisfying feeling that he could get used to!

"Yes, I do!" The girl nodded vigorously. "Without you, I would have died in that cage, all alone in the dark, helpless! Without you, I wouldn't have had the chance to avenge my parent's death and actually have a fighting chance against the waves! You, my Lord, was the one that gave me all of this, if not more!"

"…" King couldn't help but pale even more. Even after all that praise, he really didn't think he deserved this; some inner pressure, some guilt holding him back from fully accepting the praise she heaped onto him. Though the feeling of satisfaction of being praised for something he truly worked for was there, a formless pressure to live up to her expectations hovered over his shoulders, appearing out of nowhere.

It was as if... the last thing he wanted to do was disappoint her.

"My Lord? Is something wrong?

"I-" Suddenly, a notification popped up in his field of view, counting down from five seconds. "It's time."

And when the counter reached zero; suddenly, the space around them morphed to an unfamiliar one. The two found themselves in an entirely different area!

"W-Where are we!?" Raphtalia looked around nervously, not expecting to have been transported to an unknown location all of a sudden. Yet, King was strangely calm, perhaps already forming a battle plan. But on the inside, he was equally- if not more distressed than Raphtalia about what happened. His body trembled in a frequency that was unseen to others, but it definitely had a physical effect, lesser men would experience it as King radiating his killing intent- as if getting ready for battle.

_"This is not good… were we teleported somewhere?"_

He recognized this area, though not very specifically. He knew that they were outside of the city; even an idiot could tell. More importantly, just a few minutes from them, he could spot a village nearby, the place where they took up a quest previously.

_"What was the name of this place again? Ah, right! Riyute village. The ones who lived here weren't as hostile as the ones who lived in the city. No, compared to them, they were quite nice, actually. I suppose the rumors didn't spread all that far, all things considered."_

True, they still had various looks of apprehension and some reluctance to show him their wares — probably thanks to his 'intimidating figure' — but the situation was a lot better than in the capital where most of the time, he was always met with fearful, disgusted, or both expressions wherever he went.

"Sigh…_ that Aultcray guy really screwed up with his decree. I mean, did he really believe that mentally-ill woman without any proof? Was she his daughter or something? Damn it! This country really is messed up!"_

'Crack!'

"That's not good…" Above them, the sky cracked open, and from the dimensional fissure, countless amounts of locust-like creatures and various undead started to rain from the skies, dropping all over the fields and the surroundings.

_"What to do? There are too many of those things. And what the hell! Did the sky just crack open!? What is this anyway?! They expect us to fight that!?" _King was uneasy-which was putting it lightly- about the situation. Moreover, he was terrified, unable to decide on what to do. Despite all his preparations, he had no idea how to proceed when it was time to act. After all- who the hell expected the skies to literally split open and pour monsters from above?!

_"This is bad. I mean, the last time something on a similar scale happened was when that alien spaceship appeared and annihilated City-A instantly."_

Of course, even back then, the only thing he could do was watch the spaceship from the top of the Heroes Association headquarters and let other the other heroes- and mainly Saitama solve the situation.

_"Saitama even talked about a really strong alien he fought in the ship…"_

Of course, besides his friend's word, no evidence had surfaced about that 'strong alien', but King believed him either way. Saitama was not a guy who would lie.

_"They summoned me and gave me no instruction on what to do, and they expected me to fight that!? What a joke! And now, they expect me to defeat all these opponents, on top of sealing an inter-dimensional hole in the sky? What the hell! I doubt even Tatsumaki could do that!"_

Don't fuck with him!

Fighting the enemies and defeating them was the obvious route, as well as manageable seeing as they were physical enemies they could damage.

The problem was… there were too many of them! On top of that, they had to seal an inter-dimensional opening!? How the hell did they think that he and Raphtalia could face such terrible odds- and win!?

_"More importantly… where are those other three heroes?" _He and Raphtalia were transported here when the timer hit zero, but no knights or adventurers that were around them in the city came along with them.

_"That means that most likely, only the other three heroes and their party members are also transported here."_

His fast, analytical thinking gained confirmation when he turned his head — running down from the hill, his fellow heroes and their party proceeded towards the forest in the opposite direction where the village was positioned.

"Hey! Where are you going!?" He shouted after them, concerned as they didn't even stop to at least discuss the tactics to overcome the wave.

"We're going to kill the wave boss!" Motoyasu shouted back without even stopping for a moment.

"Wouldn't it be better to go together or come up with a plan!?" But they were already too far away, not even stopping to listen to what King had intended to say.

_"What a stupid bunch! They just run forward without any tactic?! And the wave boss? How do they know that thing is in that direction? Do they have a map marker or what!?"_

Their actions reminded him of babies' first MMORPG experience. Rushing in without any plan, their only course of action being 'hit the boss until it dies'. It was forgivable if they were noobs to the game. But this was real life! And there was no respawning! At least, he didn't think so, and he didn't plan on testing it out! What the hell was in their jelly-filled brains?!

"Lord King! The village!" Raphtalia called for his attention, slightly panicked, pointing towards Riyute. "The villagers! If we don't do something, they will be swarmed by the monsters quickly! They are closer to the rift than we are!" She was slightly panicked, knowing firsthand what awaited the defenseless villagers. What would be the fate of the children if their parents died.

_"Shit…!"_

King was forced to make a decision.

The castle was close, but he saw no movement or signs of the knights or adventurers making their way towards the village.

_"Maybe they were making their stand behind the walls where they could defend themselves better, and leaving everything to the four of us and our party…"_

In games, tactics like this often worked; defending and exhausting the opposition, sending out a small, specialized task force through the backdoor to eliminate the enemy leader while the main forces were busy.

Sacrificing rural areas were often necessary to spare resources and hold back the enemy until the main objective was completed — albeit, good players with divide and conquer tactics and skills could even save those areas outside of the walls.

_"Usually, such players just send out small units to aggro the raiders, drawing them away from the main force near a walled section that is under lesser pressure, but equipped with enough ranged units to eliminate the baited opposition…"_

It required immense precision, coordination, and timing for such a tactic to work — as the small unit could be easily overwhelmed and caught off guard by the immense horde on their tail before they could draw the enemy to the range of archers.

_"Of course, an advanced enough AI enemy or a veteran player would be able to see through such basic tactics and easily come up with counter-measures against it."_

However, with real people's lives at stake, King needed to consider what route to choose, and how to proceed. His decision would decide how many people would live and suffer later.

The other three were confident in heading out and charging forth without any formation- or seemingly any tactic, most likely seeking the strongest beast — thinking as though it would be the boss enemy of the wave.

_"Carelessly leaving trash mobs behind is also no good. They can easily overwhelm even the strongest parties once the biggest beast calls the smaller ones to their aid."_

He encountered situations like these many times with such algorithms.

It worked using a surprisingly simple trigger.

The moment the boss's health was lowered to a low-enough point, it would then activate a skill that called for or directly summoned all remaining trash mobs to itself to aid it. It was a no-brainer; the group that refused to clear the dungeon beforehand was overwhelmed in no time and died. The only way one could survive something like that is if one was high-leveled enough to one-hit the trash mobs in one fell swoop. But King honestly doubted that they were at that level yet. They only spend a month leveling up, after all!

"Tch!" King needed to make a decision now, or there would be dire consequences coming from his lateness in taking action

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

It was a decision that even made his King engine beat harder than usual, making him gulp, though inaudibly and unheard by Raphtalia.

"We'll help the villagers…" In the end, he came to such a decision.

_"Aside from the basic direction, I have no idea where the other three are headed. Getting lost or doing nothing will be worse than helping the villagers evacuate and killing the trash mobs." _Instead, it was better to help who he could, and head towards the only place he could directly confirm.

He made another gulp, still inaudible.

Maybe he would die here. Perhaps he would be overwhelmed by the monsters that stormed that place. In truth, just now, every cell of his body trembled in fear and urged him to turn tail and escape the situation. Even if he wanted to lie to himself that his higher stats would protect him- if the enemies could ignore his defenses, he was screwed.

_"Damn those three idiots for running forward without a tank! If they die, I'll have to deal with it alone!"_

There was a reason behind the existence of tank-like characters in games — such as him now.

The sword, spear, and bow heroes were not meant to soak up damage, but to deal it. They were DPS characters, and he was the tank character! It was apparent; they were summoned in a typical RPG composition! They were meant to work together! The only character missing was the healer, but they had their own party members, which would probably have their own healers.

But any party without a tank was doomed to a total party wipe unless they were so high-leveled that they could ignore the damage from the boss, or skillfully dodge every attack the boss threw at them! But it was as clear as day that that was not the case! Why- just why did he have to deal with such idiots?!

_"What would the other heroes of my world do? What would Saitama do?"_

He was alone, with no party members other than Raphtalia to support him. Yet, looking at the girl who was a meek little girl just a few weeks ago— who grew to be such a confident warrior — made King gather his resolve, as he remembered Saitama, talking about how he fearlessly faced monster day after day, even after strenuous training!

Say, that gave him an idea, but that had to wait until after the wave.

"_Inhale_…" King gathered the little courage he had. There was no time to waste. "Follow me!" And thus, he charged down the hill! His cloak billowing behind his back from the sheer speed at which he ran.

He was sure it would not end well. But something in him made his legs move faster than ever before! Be it fear or his newfound heroic spirit, even he didn't quite know.

…

"Ahhh!" Everywhere one looked, there was just mayhem and chaos!

The village was in utter disarray as the locusts and undead soldiers poured from the interdimensional rift, starting their attack on the village. From left to right, they targeted the living, no mercy in their evilly glowing eyes.

The few adventurers stationed in this small town couldn't hold them back for much longer; the enemy would overwhelm them at any moment!

Just now, a family was cornered by several smaller zombie soldiers, a bigger one leading them, heavily armored and even more menacing.

"Mommy!"

"Is this the end?" The father looked at the undead soldiers with a fear-stricken expression, holding his simple farming tool. His hands were trembling, definitely not trained for combat, but simple rural work.

Though it wasn't as though other people around the village were faring any better; people were still dying left and right. Simple untrained people had little chance against these monsters.

'Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!'

Although, something odd happened in the next moment. The noise of something heavy rolling down from the nearby hill, making the surrounding undead and locust turn their attention towards it and leaving the civilians alone for a moment.

"AHHHHH!"

A sizable ball, glowing and formed from shields rolled down from the hill, making a jump through the air with a great velocity using a perfectly placed and naturally-formed dirt ramp.

A scream could be heard from that ball; and following this strange phenomenon, several rocks rumbled down from the hill, squishing the undead in their way mercilessly.

The round object immediately annihilated the locusts that tried to get in its path. This strange thing sped like a bullet through the air, unimpeded by any being that got in its way!

The biggest undead turned towards this strange thing that raced towards it.

**"Grrr!" **Growling menacingly, the giant undead used its sizable ax to hit it.

'Clang!' 'Boing!'

In return, the ball formed from shields deformed for a slight moment, enduring the strain, regaining its original round shape under a moment, and like a rubber ball, it started to gain more momentum as it was reflected by the weapon!

'Clang!' 'Clang!' 'Clang!' 'Clang!' 'Clang!'

More and more undead were devastated as they tried to stand before this terrible speeding bullet of death! And it was strange, but it was like some kind of screaming was audible from within this thing. Or was it a mighty battle cry mixed with some loud rumbling?

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

No one could tell! The ones who saw the scene unfold only knew that it painted a terrifying picture! The rolling, unstoppable sphere of death annihilated everything that stood in its way!

'Clang!' 'Clang!' 'Clang!' Like a ricocheting bullet, the ball accelerated to unimaginable speeds, devastating even the biggest undead in its way, bouncing back from solid objects and continuing the devastation it wrought!

Strangely, this strange thing only seemed to hit the attacking undead and locust, almost as though there was an invisible hand controlling it, precisely avoiding the civilians, even saving many of them in their supposed last moment as the ball started to turn the enemy into a gooey paste in its carnage!

"W-what happened!?"

"Are we saved?"

"Have the heroes come to save us?"

Many civilians questioned what happened, but when they raised their heads, the only thing they saw was a wildly bouncing ball formed from the glowing shields. Its movement was confusing, even stunning — Confusing the interdimensional monsters long enough to eliminate them altogether!

The undead and locust still poured into the small village, but their numbers were significantly reduced thanks to this strange phenomenon.

"W-what is this thing!?"

"It's devastating even the biggest undead like they were nothing!"

Who- or what controlled this strange, but even more effective contraption? No one knew! But they were about to receive their answer soon enough!

"The Shield Hero gave you enough time to evacuate! Quickly, move before it's too late!"

Honestly, Raphtalia didn't quite know what just happened.

First, her Lord started to charge down from the hill, when seemingly he slipped, stepping on his cloak, rolling down seemingly uncontrollably from the steep slope. After this, he activated one of his skills, forming a ball of shields around himself to protect himself from the impact with the ground- or, if you asked her, it was him initiating his perfect plan to reach the village in time and thin out the monsters before the casualties grew.

Doing this caused the strange ball roll to down from the hill, picking up speed, and knocking over every stone in its way that started to roll with it, raining down on the undead in the way.

_"Lord King truly is amazing! He's already calculated everything like this, and even the rolling stones are seemingly avoiding the civilians! He truly is the best!"_

Her respect and awe started to grow ever more, raising King's image to never-seen heights- reaching the absurd.

"AHHHHHH!"

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

Meanwhile, the 'mighty' battle cry and the terrible rumble of the King Engine continued, echoing throughout the whole town. This echo continued to spread thanks to the houses aligned in such a way that the effect of the King Engine increased exponentially, making the undead falter, stunned from the sudden rumbling noise of the King Engine.

This gave Raphtalia just enough time to cut down many of these monsters, evacuating the civilians in need with help, alongside the nearby adventurers-

'Crack!'

The 'shield prison' King encased himself in suddenly disappeared, making him spin in the air wildly.

"AHHHH!"

"Lord King!" Raphtalia watched in fright as her Lord rolled in the air uncontrollably, heading towards the biggest towering undead she had ever seen. Then, following the conservation of momentum, he suddenly collided with the towering undead's head, stopping his uncontrolled movement immediately!

'Bang! Crack!'

With full force, his armored shield managed to collide with the undead's face, arriving at the perfect angle. Immediately, the sharp end of the shield found itself in the fault of its armor; its head tilting in all wrong directions, it's spine breaking immediately from the pressure of the shield, the combined weight of the man, and its own heavy helmet!

'Crack!' 'Pop!'

Just like that, King separated the undead's head from its body, making the towering creature collapse on the spot in but a moment!

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

King tried to get himself together after the wild ride, still confused and dizzy on what happened, adrenaline coursing through his veins intensely.

"My head…!" Grabbing his head, he didn't even know where he was. All he remembered was that he stumbled onto his cloak.

Immediately, he started to roll down the hill uncontrollably, getting dizzy, only having enough composure to activate his [Shield Prison] skill on himself — which wasn't the best choice of skills at the time. Still, nothing else came to his mind at that moment.

Miraculously, he landed on his feet after the undead was destroyed, completely intact; Landing in such a way, he created a small crater under himself, feet slightly embedded into the ground, and the man stood completely straight, like a heroic statue!

His stomach was completely emptied from the intense 'bizarre rolling adventure' a long time ago, his face completely pale; the sound of the King Engine intensifying as adrenaline coursed through his veins! He was not in good condition. He was going to be- actually, he's already sick!

_"I might throw up… again!"_

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

Slowly, as it echoed through the village, the King Engine's mystical rumble even managed to find its way into the nearby mine, the natural echo of the cave increasing its effectiveness and making it serve as a loudspeaker, radiating the sound for miles!

…

"That's it! We've almost got it!"

"Hold it in place better, Motoyasu!"

"Hey! I'm doing my best here!"

Fighting with a chimera, the three heroes and their party were struggling, yet, as they held their ground steadily, they were slowly starting to gain the upper hand over the beast. Soon, they would defeat it!

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

"What's that!?"

"That sound!"

Yet, suddenly, a familiar echo appeared, filling the battlefield, and even suppressing the sounds of monsters and the nearby battle.

Most immediately recognized the menacing rumble, echoing throughout the entire cave area. It practically drove the surrounding monsters into a crazed state, making them thrash uncontrollably and disrupting every fighting party.

"He is here!?"

"But how!?"

Ren remained silent. He didn't like this! Not at all!

Although, if that man was here, they would've most likely finished this ordeal sooner than later. With how he decimated the entire section of the forest with a single calculated, might-filled strike, he shuddered to think how he would've fought the beast.

_"Actually, I thought that he would've followed us to get rid of this beast."_

Alas, the hero of the sword was wrong, as until now, his fellow hero didn't appear.

Was he just playing around? Testing them? Or was he simply looking down on their effort and only stepping in when needed?

It was rare when Ren Amaki was unsure of something, and this was the rare few occasions that it happened. Where was the Shield Hero? What was his plan? He could only guess.

_"That man is a monster, no question about it. But what does he want? If he wanted to, I am sure he could have ended all of this in an instant."_

"**Awwooooo**!"

"Hey! Hey! It's escaping!" The towering Chimera they fought suddenly howled, it's expression turning even wilder as it moved in a frenzy. It was as if it gained more mass and muscles; wait, it did, actually. Its size grew twofold!

**"Grrrr!"**

"Bind it! Bind it!"

"What is this!? Is it evolving!?"

Several party members threw nets at the beast, but it tore through them right away, making a run, breaking the encirclement as it started to sprint towards the rumbling sound coming from the direction of the village.

"It's running towards the village!"

"If this monster reaches it…"

"Damn that maniac!" Ren bit his lip. This mission started to grow more troublesome than he initially liked it. As he suspected, it was the fault of that man! Damn it! Just what did that maniac plan for!?

…

"I'm alive?" King checked himself once again through rapid breathing, still unable to believe he survived such a fall- and consequent bouncing in the shield prison.

_"Well, my defense is quite high now…"_

He needed to give his compliments to that blacksmith once they survived this. But what really happened?

All he remembered was stumbling onto his cloak, then starting to roll down from the hill. To block the damage from the fall, he activated the ability of one of his shields, the skill called [Shield Prison].

_"In hindsight, maybe it wasn't the best idea…"_

Nonetheless, earlier on, that was the only thing that came to his mind so suddenly, and thus, his seemingly infinite roll started.

From the entire thing from start to finish, he was too dizzy to do anything besides bear with the horror that he had to endure encased in that rolling death-ball which was the shield prison he cast on himself. And thus, his path towards the village started…

_"Just as I've said before… no capes!" _He needed to make the people in this world understand; it was dangerous, and not at all worth it! He barely survived the earlier experience- though unknown to him, his damage resistance grew to such a point that falling directly from that height would've actually been the same as tripping over a pencil.

For a convenient blanket and raincoat, as well as a fireproof cloak, the cape was more of a hindrance to him at this moment. Perhaps it would show its worth in the future, but for the moment, it almost killed him.

"Ugh… my stomach." He was still nauseous, the world spinning around him.

He barely ate anything for several days due to the stress that came with the coming catastrophe, emptying the contents of his stomach while in the rolling ball of doom, King emptied every last remainder from his stomach.

"Lord King, are you alright!?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine..."

"That was amazing, Lord King! You rolled down from the hill and destroyed all the undead and locusts!" Raphtalia's eyes started to shine even more; her inner fangirl slowly beginning to appear.

"Really?" What was this girl talking about? He did no such thing! He barely knew where he was now.

"I already evacuated the civilians, they're all safe, thanks to you, my Lord! You've saved them all!" She beamed brightly. "Well, all of them when we arrived..." Raphtalia suddenly became somber.

"I suppose that's good… At least we managed to save some people." King immediately tried to comfort Raphtalia, which worked like a charm.

"You're right. We saved as much as we could!"

Still, King was clueless about what happened. Nonetheless, he was glad for whatever miracle that helped them survive this ordeal.

"Although… we have another problem." Raphtalia pointed out. And just by looking around, King started to tremble.

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

Despite the devastation that his ball of death wrought, despite the countless amount of undead he unintentionally killed, more came, replacing the fallen ones.

_"This is DEFINITELY not good…!"_ It took only a moment for King to recognize the undead and locust, all of them aiming their hateful gazes at him, radiating some kind of repulsive aura.

This made his King engine beat even harder, echoing throughout the small town. The composition of the houses even strengthened this echo, making all the monsters around stop whatever they were doing and seek the source of the annoying sound.

"I-I… so many! What should we do!? There is no way we can…!" Raphtalia muttered. Even with King at her side, the undead in such a number intimidated her.

At that moment, many variations of the possible situation ran through King's head, and he immediately realized that they couldn't possibly deal with this many. As there were no civilians around, it would be better just to flee and withdraw. Yep! With no civilians in danger, it would be foolish to remain around any longer. He didn't have any AOE skills, or any attack skills, to be honest, and Raphtalia definitely couldn't deal with them.

"Huh?" But only a moment later, he recognized something from the corner of his eye.

Many balls of fire were heading towards the village, preparing to bombard the area.

"Shit!"

King realized that these balls of fire were approaching too fast to find any cover; thus, his only remaining option was to yank Raphtalia closer, cover the both of them with his metal-woven cloak, and he activated one of his shields.

"[Light Metal Shield]!" A diamond-shaped shield appeared on his forearm; when it was actively equipped, he gained +1 Magical Defense.

King gritted his teeth, prepared to be squished by the terrible flaming balls. But as a result of his incredible luck, something miraculous happened! A transparent barrier appeared above him, forming a defensive shield around him and Raphtalia.

"Lo-Lord King…?" Raphtalia was flabbergasted, being held so close by her hero made her blush intensely.

'Bang!' 'Bang!' 'Bang!'

The fireballs bombarded the area around them, scorching the whole village and starting intense fires, making many houses collapse.

For some time, the bombardment continued. Miraculously, in the end, only the two of them remained intact, the undead lying in shambles, dead, or crawling in pieces.

"W-We survived?" Raphtalia blinked, checking herself. Though amazed and happy that they survived the bombardment, the fact was that her Lord was the one that protected them! He truly was amazing; a bombardment like that couldn't even harm him!

"Huh… that was close." For the first time since he was transported here, King considered himself lucky for having this shield. Although, it would have been better if the bombardment didn't happen in the first place. But looking around, with all those undead destroyed, maybe it was better this way.

"Let's just get…"

"Look at that! Isn't that the Shield Devil? You are quite tough, surviving our bombardment."

"Oh, hey… wait? You bombarded us?" King couldn't believe it! Why would they do that?! He was on their side. This was bullshit! Fine, being clearly discriminated against was basically the daily experience after that stupid rumor spread. Now? They were just outright attacking them! If he wasn't so sure that he'd immediately get arrested for it, he'd sock the captain in the face for good measure.

"Y-You!?" Raphtalia's vision went red with rage! Reaching for her sword!

Attacking her Lord and possibly endangering the lives of civilians!? How preposterous! How dare these failures for knights endanger their lives!?

"You attacked us despite not knowing whether there were civilians!?" 'Clang!' Raphtalia was before the captain in less a moment, and the man barely raised his sword to block the strike, groaning slightly, needing to push his sword back harder to hold his blade against the girl's bizarrely high strength. "Despite not knowing if there were civilians around, you attacked?! Depending on your answer, I will either cut you down or let you off!"

Her glare was such that if she had psychic powers, her eyes would shoot lasers, burning a hole right through the guard captain's head! Or putting it in nicer terms, if looks could kill, he'd be dead a few times over.

"What's your problem!? I just did what was needed! What are a few civilians compared to victory over the wave! Stupid demi-human! Don't you know the meaning of sacrifice!?"

"YOU-!?"

"So you attacked us despite knowing we were here?" King asked in a cold tone, interrupting Raphtalia's angry statement.

He was honestly uneasy. Why would they do that? Killing their own civilians? Were they stupid, or what? Actually, are the people of this world just fundamentally retarded in the first place? Only a few people seemed to be exempt from such a curse, like Erhard, Raphtalia, and reluctantly, even that slave merchant. Everyone else seemed to just be plain stupid!

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

The King engine started to roar uneasily, and when mixing this with the menacing, unmoving expression of King, and his new segmented dark armor pictured an immense beast only restrained by his sheer will!

Indeed, King looked even bigger than he truly was, expressing an unimaginable pressure with the fires and burning buildings around them! The air basically shuddered around him from the heat!

His cold tone and 'glare' made even the veteran Guard Capitan hesitate, his guards trembling as they raised their swords and shields, gulping audibly.

The rumors didn't lie, nor did they exaggerate! This man was truly a monster!

"I-I…"

_"Sigh,_ how troublesome." King couldn't believe it!

He did his best, and these people did something like this? He didn't know if he should be disappointed or angry. Actually, he knew. Disappointed at their sheer stupidity, and angry at the fact he had to save people like _them. _All in all, a balanced mix.

"Err…"

"W-What do you plan to do to us? If you kill us…" No! He wouldn't dare! The heinous crimes he was already accused of would only get worse if he killed them!

Even if the king couldn't provide clear evidence, the guard captain was sure that Aultcray would not lie to his people!

The Shield Hero would never clear his name if he killed them here and now! Surely, if he killed them now, the country would be against him even more than they already were!

But that brought a more terrifying prospect. All he needed to do... was kill them with no survivors, leaving no leakage of the news.

"…Something's behind you." King pointed behind the guards, tilting his head slightly.

"Ahhh!" While they were exchanging a few words, behind the guards, a large swarm of undead gathered.

It was as though they nicely waited for their little chat to cease, and immediately after that, they jumped onto the guards to devour them!

"[Air Strike Shield]!" King activated his shield in the nick of time, projecting a transparent shield before some of the guards, saving them.

Right after, Raphtalia was before the undead, jumping up and embedding her sword in the head of the biggest one, toppling the towering creature with but a strike.

Chaos and panic ensured amongst the guards; even the guard captain couldn't get them together as the undead started their intense counter-attack.

King tried to be brave, but after seeing the number of enemies gathered, he questioned if they could even get out of here alive.

Hell! He didn't even know how they reached this point! Everything just blurred together into a mishmash of events, starting from the point he started to charge and stumbled onto his cape. Then all he remembered was rolling down the hill in his shield ball; and these people bombarding them despite knowing that he was there.

It was crazy!

It was chaos in its purest form, facing a lesser army of the undead!

It would not end well! King was all too aware of it!

He was forced to move and defend, block strike after strike. Despite his nature, even getting before a guard and a possibly lethal strike and blocking them with his shield. Raphtalia was like his shadow, following him and striking down any potential danger!

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

His heart started to beat even louder and more intense. Right now, the only thing he knew was if they did not work together, none of them will survive! Thus, he did what was the logical option, trying to bring order in this intense chaos!

"Get yourself together!" King shouted in the end; his booming voice echoed through the whole area, making the undead stop for a moment, and giving a chance for the guards to push them back!

"Do you think I will listen to a criminal like you!? I am…!"

"THERE IS NO TIME TO ARGUE WHO IS WHO! WORK TOGETHER, OR DIE HERE!"

On King's face, sheer terror was pictured, though to anyone who saw him just now only saw one thing. A fiery, battle-hardened expression, in his eyes: Sheer determination to solve the problem! An inhuman rage that said: If you don't do something, I will, but it won't be pretty!

Combining this with the sound of the King Engine, it commanded respect, fear, and willingness to follow the only person who could save them! Making King look both like a beast and a true battlefield commander as he stood in the middle of the chaos and gave his unrelenting command!

His terrifying visage, his dark armor, and the red cloak... he truly looked like a general that weathered a thousand wars!

"What are we waiting for, you lot!? Will we leave the Shield Hero to take all the kills!?"

**"NOOO!"**

The shout echoed in unison from the guards around them!

Ignoring their guard captain's stuttering orders to obey him, the guardsmen finally started to work together with King, pushing the enemy back, despite their terrible odds.

And just like that, the guardsmen, combined with the Shield Hero and his companion, started to push the undead back, managing to even thin their numbers enough to inspire hope!

"I can't believe it! We'll survive! We WILL survive!"

Miraculously, no soldier had died thanks to the immense teamwork King somehow inspired. His orders were sharp and instant, never once letting a single man die!

Although their happiness came too early, as in the next moment, the terrible roar of a beast hit their ears.

**"Awooo!" **The ground started to tremble when the large, empowered Chimera charged towards the small town, cutting through the rubble as though it was nothing, swiping away even the biggest undead in its way as though they were mere toys.

"W-What is that!?" The guards immediately stopped in their tracks, staring at the terrible beast in fear.

"L-Lord King! What should we do?!" Raphtalia also stopped her blade. Some fear still lingered in her after seeing the towering beast.

_"Shit…"_ King already gave up hope that this 'wave' thing was going to end anytime soon. Still, this was too much.

First, undead and giant bugs! Now, this!? There was a limit to how much his poor heart could take, and the world seemed to love finding new ways to bring him to the cusp of an actual heart attack! Why? Just why was the world-beating him around?

_"What is this anyway?! A lion's head? Half-goat at the back, and a snake tail? Is this some kind of Chimera?"_

He was pretty sure it was some mutant chimera. But how was he to deal with it? He had no idea. Worse! Why did it even appear!? Weren't the other three heroes supposed to deal with the wave boss? As stupid as their plan was, he hoped that they would've at least succeeded in it!

_"Let's see… the tools Erhard implemented into the armor might have some use."_

His heart in his throat, his blood long ago leaving his face, King forced his hand to raise with his sheer will, pushing a switch forth and shooting a web around the beast from the wrist crossbow implemented in his gauntlet.

**"Guahhh!"**

The thing writhed, trying to get away from the net entwined around it, slowly clawing its way through.

_"Dammit! As I expected, it's not working!"_

Why did he even try, then? Bosses were usually immune to status effects! Maybe he was too hopeful after what he had gone through.

A little luck would be nice to have every now and then! Unfortunately, if you asked him, he was flat-out of luck. He was always all out of luck… It was as if all of his luck was spent on his S-Class status, just for that sweet paycheck every month- and a cool bonus every time a monster died near him.

_"Where are those three idiots when you need them?!"_

They were missing since the start of the battle! What were they doing instead of helping him!? They were heroes, and they were just lazing around? What the hell!? 'Fight the wave-boss' his ass; it's right in front of him!

"Die!"

The soldiers — the few who dared to approach and attack the beast — charged towards the Chimera, but they were like stones on the sidewalk, as they were kicked away just as easily, thrown far away.

"Lord King! Look out!"

"Ahh! Run! Flee for your lives!"

**[****ドドドド**** Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! ****ドドドド****]**

As the beast whose size dwarfed even that two-headed Cerberus wannabe started to charge against King, all the courage and composure he managed to gather until now shattered like a glass pane against a sledgehammer, as he ran in the opposite direction!

_"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"_

"AHHHHHH!" And thus, King started to shout as loudly as he could, making a 'tactical retreat' in his path. Of course, that shout of his and the continuously roaring King Engine annoyed the already injured beast, as it immediately followed him to silence this ant!

"What he is doing!?"

"Is he running away!?"

No matter his high defense or his levels, King was not stupid enough to pit himself against such a mountain of muscle!

It was the most dreadful thing he encountered since coming here!

"No… my Lord is drawing it away!" Raphtalia, of course, right away recognized King's immense 'tactical genius'!

That was right! How could her Lord abandon a battle? This was all part of a bigger plan — just like the shield ball, which thinned out the undead and gave them time to evacuate!

"Don't wanna die! Don't wanna die! Don't wanna die!" Meanwhile, as King made his escape; he repeated this mantra, only to glance back and see the beast literally right behind him.

"AHHHH!"

**"Grrr!"** 'Gnaw!' The beast was inches away from biting down on his head; it was literally right behind him!

Having no other choice, King started to throw the various potions and plant grit he kept in his pouch behind him. "Leave me alone!"

**"Grrrr!"** The beast growled louder, annoyed as different potions, various plants, and other alchemical ingredients collided with its face.

One of these items was swallowed by the snake tail, making it choke, the second blinded the goat on the back of the beast, causing the Chimera to limp and continue its charge funnily. The main lion head already had a face full of glass shards, the poisonous plants making it suffer as it infiltrated its wounds!

"Crap!" Taking a wrong turn, King reached a dead end! It was over! He was gonna die here!

**"Grrr…"** The beast approached him slowly, madness and rage apparent in its eyes! Not only did this human emit that annoying sound, it even threw various items at it, actually harming it with various cuts from the glass shards!

"Just leave me alone…" King muttered fearfully, as the beast could take it no longer! It wanted to silence that annoying noise from this human! It also wanted it to suffer as much as possible for causing it a fair bit of pain!

**"Gruahhhh!"**

**[****ドドドド**** RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! ****ドドドド****RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! ****ドドドド**** RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! ****ドドドド****]**

"JUST GO AWAY! GRAAAAAHHHHH!" Recognizing that this may very well be his last act in life, King shouted with all his might, raising his hand, and punched forth with every fiber of his being! This was his final attempt! If he was to die, he wasn't gonna make it easy!

It was an instinctive move he made. The beast swallowed his arm at that moment, and incidentally, one of its teeth pushed one of the switches on the wrist!

'Kaching!'

In his shieldless hand, a new shield folded open from the wrist protector, immediately splitting open the mouth- and by extension, the head of the Chimera like a circular blade through a tofu block!

**"Aiiiii!"**

With its head cut in half and its remaining brain functions barely hanging on a thread, the momentum of the charging jump made the beast spin above King helplessly, breaking down the already cracked wall behind him.

**"Auuuuuu!"**

The beast whined one last time in pain, impaled by the sharp, broken beams hidden behind the walls of the already dilapidated house.

**I**ts blood gushed like a fountain, covered King from head to toe, making it look like he ended the battle extra violently.

'Thud!' The suffering of the beast ended as a heavy beam hanging from the wall fell upon its exposed head, making it look like King ended its suffering by splattering its brain matter around with a broken beam.

"I-I'm alive?" King got up, covered in the blood of the Chimera, looking around in confusion about what happened. "I-It died!?" Even King was surprised. Looking at the impaled beast in shock, with its guts splattered about, the sharp beams piercing its insides out.

It was a scene to befit a horror movie! _"H-How gruesome…!" _If he still had something in his stomach, he would have thrown it up right now. It was lucky he didn't recognize the brain matter and intestines hanging from his armor, otherwise, his stomach would attempt to expel whatever was in his stomach — including any stomach acid.

**[Level up! Level up! Level up!]**

**[Congratulations! You reached level 39!]**

**[You earned the title: Conqueror of the Wave! Savior of People!]**

The notification appeared immediately after the beast died.

It was about damn time! He was stuck in level 37 for some time and was unable to level up, no matter what he did! Even a few straight days of grinding didn't make his level budge in the slightest!

Still, he was still confused about what happened or how he managed to survive. For King, everything happened too fast. One moment he was running away from this thing; in the next, it was dead behind him; him being covered in blood — again.

Too much was happening all at once! He couldn't process it all so fast!

The only thing he did know, was that he survived through sheer dumb luck. Who would know that the shield that Erhard put on his wristguard would end up saving him in the most unexpected way possible?

Only noticing the stench of the blood on him, King wrinkled his nose.

_"I need a thorough bath after this…"_

"Damn! What a mess!"

"Were we too late?"

Moments after leveling up, Motoyasu and his fellow heroes arrived, spotting King in the middle of the destruction, covered in blood and guts, with the Chimera that they had to work together to slowly weaken, brutalized in the short moment between them chasing the Chimera and arriving here. It was less than a few minutes since the Chimera went wild and rushed towards the village, yet it was dead in that short period of time?

"W-what the-!?"

"Y-You!?"

"It's about time you lot got here…" King muttered, sighing in dissatisfaction. Were these heroes actually that incompetent, or were they painfully inept on purpose? His face offered his usual blank expression, but with hints of discomfort. After all, who would be comfortable, being caked in blood with various bits of meat hanging off their body?

"H-He managed to kill the wave boss so quickly!"

"Don't be ridiculous! There's no way that the Shield-"

"He's right! The body of the Chimera is right there!" Itsuki pointed at the carcass of the Chimera, cutting Malty short — who looked extremely sick. Her previous lush red hair was missing in patches, her face was bandaged—the signs of poisoning present on her. The only thing she was missing was the sickly green skin that would've sold the 'deathly diseased' look.

"If you have a weak stomach, don't get any closer..." King advised, looking out for their goodwill. Though they were awfully inept as heroes, the macabre scene he was standing in might been too much for them.

The cracked rift above them slowly started to fix itself, and then the sky went back to the state it was before the wave as if nothing happened. That meant that they managed to survive, and the wave had finally ended.

Ren, Motoyasu, and several of their companions walked closer, inspecting the corpse.

It was in a horrible state, impaled throughout its body with various beams and laceration wounds all over it, with its head nearly unrecognizable with a sizable beam stuck through its skull. Though with the state the rest of its body was in, the beam through its skull seemed like a mercy kill. It was honestly nauseating. Even the veteran adventurers that joined them could hardly stomach how terribly and how cruelly King took care of the poor thing. Despite all the innocent lives that it took before they got to it — most of them thought that it didn't deserve its eventual horrible fate.

The signs of an absolute slaughter were present — many undead lay utterly decimated, barely recognizable aside from the old armor it wore and the shards of bone on the ground. Like the Chimera, they stood no chance against him!

"J-just what kind of monster are you?" Motoyasu asked with a trembling voice, audibly gulping. He could still hardly believe a human was capable of such a thing! No, in fact, it all seemed like someone set the whole thing up!

On that day, it was laid bare before them. King was an absolute monster. There was no hope for those that went against him! And for those foolish enough to try... there would be no mercy for them.

* * *

**Scene Change: Saitama's Apartment: King's World:**

"Sensei, I'm back."

"Ah, Genos! You're back."

Saitama waved lazily, inviting Genos inside his apartment.

His apartment was situated in City Z—the city which was famous for its increased monster activity, filled with mysterious disappearances and strange cases.

A plain, small apartment was his home, and it was small enough that Saitama could rent it from the little payment he gained from being a hero, and from working at construction sites from time to time when money was scarce — whose numbers increased thanks to the destruction caused by monsters.

Most — if not all the mysterious beings — or monsters that he met all just loved to devastate buildings and cause property damage in general. Why they would do so in the first place, Saitama had no idea. Maybe it was just their hobby. Not as he cared. Monsters were monsters. Who knew what they wanted?

He only knew that as a hero for fun; it was his task to stop them. It was just too bad that they all died from just one punch, barring that one alien he met. What was his name... Borat? Boris? Beerus? Whatever, excluding that purple alien that called himself the Denominator Of The Universe, Fighting monsters just wasn't interesting anymore. The rush from a hard-fought battle no longer there, replaced with utter boredom after using but a single punch to utterly annihilate them.

"How was your day, Sensei?"

"Nothing much…" Saitama answered lazily, scratching his stomach, wearing a pair of shorts and a shirt with the text 'Oppai' on it along with a crude drawing of boobs on it. Saitama just watched TV, unbothered by Genos — who just placed the bag filled with groceries on the counter-top.

"What about you? Anything interesting pop up on your end?"

"Yes, there have been a few events that occurred recently, just notified by the Heroes Association."

"Oh…" Saitama acknowledged his disciple's statement, almost interested in its contents — of course, he never turned his eyes away from the show he was watching.

"Since the disappearance of King a month ago, the monster and criminal activity in M-City and the surrounding cities have drastically increased."

"Ah? Did King disappear? When?" Saitama scratched his bald head in confusion, his expression still as blank as always.

"You didn't know about it?" Genos was surprised. His master usually always hung around with King, sparring each other within their virtual battlefields. If anything, he would've known about the missing hero.

"I tried to return the games that he borrowed me last week, but he wasn't home at the time. I thought he was just busy…" The bald hero picked his nose, flicking away the booger he dug up.

"No, he disappeared around a month ago. Didn't you watch the news?" Genos started preparing their meal, putting some water to boil on the gas stove.

"Nah, it's too gloomy, always full of bad news. They should really lighten up a little, not just whenever they get on sports." Saitama said, before suddenly spitting out something in his mouth. "_Ptui! Ptui!_ Damn mosquitoes!" One of those pests flew into his mouth once again! For all his overwhelming strength and feats, the only thing he couldn't destroy or get rid of were these damn mosquitoes! Flies, bees, and other insects, he could deal with. Only those stupid black pests that went 'nywiiiiiing' around his ears were the bane of his existence!

"I see." Genos hummed, acknowledging his Sensei's views.

Indeed, the news and other various media outlets were sometimes too depressing. He completely understood what Saitama thought.

"_Wait... is this another of Master Saitama's lessons? To not think too deeply into the pain and sorrow, and push forward? That must be it! If one's mind is clouded by various thoughts and sadness from what they failed to accomplish in a battle, one cannot fight to their fullest potential! I must write this down immediately!" _Genos took out his notebook, jotting down his master's wise lessons! They would prove useful, in time.

"How did he disappear?"

"According to the recordings of cameras around at the time, after he defeated a monster, he picked up an unknown book carried by the owl monster, and a bright light swallowed him, and when the light faded, he disappeared…"

"Heh… it's an Isekai cliché." Saitama let out a small laugh, almost finding it ironic. He remembered when King said once that if someone gave him the choice to be sent to a fantasy world, he would probably not. Something along the lines of the stress of making choices and needing to save lives, and all the expectations weighing on him would be too much for him. Playing games here was much easier in comparison.

"What?"

"Nothing." Of course, Saitama was concerned about King — about his friend's wellbeing. But he was sure he could manage. Though he wasn't actually very strong, he was a smart guy, after all. He only hoped that the light that swallowed him was not some disintegration ray that vaporized him.

_"That would be a real pity…" _Who would lend him games, or play them with him if he died? — Even if King always did beat him, even while holding back or with a massive handicap.

"Anyway… Most of the heroes are now working overtime to push back the monster activity and the growing criminal influence in the affected cities. While King was around, his presence was enough to suppress them, but now, they're getting out of control with King out of the picture. The organization even ordered many other S-Class heroes to help out."

"Is that so?" Saitama started to munch on chips, slowly savoring their taste. It was a rare occasion for him to snack on junk foods like this — always spending his money as frugally as possible. But thanks to his recent work at a construction site, his nice boss at the time gave him a bonus for doing nearly five men's worth of work.

"Indeed. With the continuous earthquakes happening around the globe and that Hero Hunter's appearance, we need to work harder and be on guard for anything."

"Yeah… those earthquakes are really starting to get annoying." These earthquakes had interestingly started a month ago, right after King disappeared. Was it a coincidence? Maybe. Saitama had no idea.

"What 'Hero Hunter'?" Hearing about some 'hero hunter', Saitama sat up, tilting his head in intrigue. What was Genos talking about? Was someone hunting heroes?

"Ah, Sensei, you really don't read your mail, do you?"

"Hey! It's not my fault! My data ran out!" Saitama fumed angrily.

It was all thanks to that stupid anime he watched on his phone. Damn King for recommending it to him! It was so interesting and funny! By the time he was done watching it, he barely had any data left! He blamed King! Both him and that useless blue-haired goddess.

He might need to end up borrowing some Wifi off Genos again...

"Then I will give you a shorter explanation." Genos continued after a small pause. "A criminal has been appearing recently, aiming for and actively hunting heroes. First, he was only aiming for low ranking ones, but as time passes, he's slowly been 'hunting' higher-ranked heroes. The Hero Association sent a mail to every hero under their employment to be careful and report if they detected strange activity regarding this criminal."

"Huh, what a hobby. Couldn't he find a less dangerous hobby? He's causing quite a bit of trouble."

"Indeed, worse still, he's doing so this such grave times. Perhaps he's taking advantage of the current situation without King around?"

_'Quake!' 'Quake!' 'Quake!' 'Quake!'_

The earth started to tremble again.

It happened more and more recently, sometimes weaker than before, sometimes stronger — though the latter started to become more and more frequent!

The earthquake was always messing up Saitama's apartment. A thing that annoyed the bald hero for fun greatly!

"Aww man, I need to clean the house again!" Now, it only lasted a few seconds this time around, but it was enough to mess his house up again.

"Don't worry, Sensei! I'm on it!" Genos was about to start his usual cleaning duty when his mobile provided by the Heroes Association started to ring.

"Hello. I see, Hmm... alright."

Saitama returned to his laying position, supporting his head with one hand, using the other to scratch his butt. Meanwhile, Genos dealt with whoever was calling him.

"Sensei, I apologize, but I need to go. All the S-Class heroes have been called to headquarters. I think it's important; you should also come. If it's something like the alien invasion a few months ago, we might need your assistance again."

"You think so?" Saitama raised his brow — though, from the wrinkles on his forehead, his minimal interest was visible — as he had very little eyebrows, another side-effect of being bald.

"Yes. I think it will important, so having you around will be able to minimize any damage if problems occur."

"Well, I'm bored anyway, so why not. Wait for a bit, I need to change into my hero costume."

"Of course."

And thus, Genos waited patiently while Saitama changed into his hero getup.

The reason why the S-Class heroes were called... they would find out soon.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Well, that's it!**

**Sorry for the long wait!**

**Life, laziness, lack of willingness to write, and work took my time!**

**RnR!**

**Read and review!**

**Tell me your opinion! Send PM if you have further questions!**

**Sail safe! Safe winds! Good day! Good night! Until next time!**

**Stay away from corona!**

**In the next chapter: The banquet! The announcement of the hero association!**

**Until next time!**


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